In Name Only
by deviousnsinning
Summary: An AU story where a set of unusual circumstances brings Nathan and Haley together...
1. Chapter One

**Title:** In Name Only

**Author:** Diane

**Pairing/Category:** NH, AU

**Rating:** Mature Rated

**Disclaimer:** Nope, I don't own a thing!

**Spoilers/Warnings:** No spoilers as it's AU. Some chapters contain scenes and language of a moderate sexual nature.

**Summary:** An unusual set of circumstances bring two people together…

**Author's Note:** This is completely AU. Main things to point out at the start of this story are that Nathan and Lucas are cousins and not brothers and also that Haley never grew up in Tree Hill. Everything else should be self-explanatory as the story unfolds.

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**Chapter One**

Nathan Scott stared down at the document in front of him. He should have known his father would pull a stunt like this. The son of a bitch always had to have the last word and it looked like even a _little_ thing like death wasn't going to stop that from happening once more.

Running his hands through his hair, he tried to think of anything that would get him out of this but after having just spoken with his father's lawyer as well as his own, he knew it was futile. Dan Scott had made damn sure his Last Will and Testament was watertight and couldn't be contested by anyone.

Getting up from his comfortable leather desk chair, Nathan walked over to the cabinet where he kept his expensive scotch and after pouring a double measure into a crystal tumbler, he downed it almost in one go. He was tempted to have another but he needed to keep a clear head if he was going to sort this damn mess out. What the hell had his father been thinking when he added that Clause to his Will?

Walking back over to his desk, he stood by the large window and stared at the Chicago skyline as everything that had happened that day whirled around in his head. It wasn't as if he needed his father's money; he was a successful businessman in his own right but still… It was the principle of the matter. That money was his rightful inheritance and he deserved it after all the crap he'd gone through as a kid at his father's hands.

Picking up the copy of the Will from his desk, he re-read a particular section again:

'I, Daniel Royal Scott, upon my death, bequeath the bulk of my Estate to my son, Nathan Daniel Scott, on his thirtieth birthday. However, the sum of two hundred and fifty million dollars will only be bestowed to him on the day of his wedding. In the event that he is not married by the time he is thirty, and married for three years thereafter, he shall receive nothing except for the family home in Tree Hill, North Carolina. Should the marriage last for less than three years, the money will be removed from his possession and distributed among other family members and to the charities I have listed separately.'

Nathan felt like screaming but the last thing he wanted was to draw unnecessary attention to himself and create any office gossip. His secretary was bad enough as it was without adding fuel to the fire. Checking his watch, he saw that it wasn't even four o'clock yet but he didn't care. He knew he wasn't going to be getting any actual work done so he might as well leave early. Picking up his phone, he dialled his secretary's extension and she picked up on the second ring.

"Maggie, I'm going to be leaving in a few minutes so just take messages from now on. Oh, and get Lucas on the line for me." He hung up the phone before she could get a word in. A few moments later, his phone buzzed and he picked up the receiver. "Thanks," he told Maggie and as soon as he heard a click on the line, he said, "Luke, I need to talk to you. It's urgent."

"Hello to you too, cuz. What's up?"

"It's not something I want to talk about over the phone. I was wondering if there's any way we can meet up?"

"Sure, if you're willing to fly back home. You know I can't leave Brooke so close to her due date."

"Damn! I'd forgotten about that."

"Nathan, you only saw her a few days ago at the…the funeral. Are you okay?"

"No, I'm not." He replied honestly. "I'll cancel my meetings down here and I'll catch the next available flight out. Can you do me a favour though and not tell anyone I'm coming back?"

"Uh sure, if that's what you want. Call and let me know when you get in and where you want me to meet you."

"Thanks Luke, I really appreciate it."

"Can you just give me an idea of what's going on? You've got me all worried here, man."

"I'm sorry. You know me though, I'm probably freaking out over nothing. It's just…uh, did you happen to be given a copy of Dan's Will?"

On the other end of the line, Lucas frowned. His cousin wasn't one to freak out over nothing and he knew whatever it was had to be pretty serious for him to sound so worked up. "No, I didn't. Why, what's in it?"

Nathan sighed. "It's better that I just show it to you when we meet up. I've gotta go. I'll call you when I'm back home."

"Okay. See you soon."

After saying goodbye, Nathan hung up the phone and not wanting his secretary to find out what his plans were, he called the airline himself and booked a seat on the next available flight to Tree Hill and once that was done, he then booked into a hotel nearest the airport. Until he knew for sure who else knew about the stipulation in his father's Will, he didn't want anyone to know he was back home and start bombarding him with questions as to why he had returned so soon after the funeral.

Taking a deep breath, he steeled himself before going out to face the barrage of questions his secretary would no doubt have for him once he revealed he was going away again. Sometimes, he really wondered who was in charge of his company; him or her.


	2. Chapter Two

**Author's Notes:** Thanks to everyone who has submitted a review for the first chapter. I'm really glad you're all enjoying it. :)

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**Chapter Two**

Lucas sat in Nathan's hotel suite early the next morning and watched his cousin pacing up and down in front of him. He had never seen him in such an agitated state and he wondered what the hell had happened to get him that way.

"Jeez Nate, will ya sit down?" He finally said when he'd had enough. "I've been here over half an hour and you still haven't told me what's wrong."

Instead of saying anything, Nathan went and picked up a cream coloured document off the table and handed it over and then watched the other man read it. He couldn't help smirking when a few seconds later Lucas' head shot up and he stared at him with a bewildered look on his face.

"Is this for real?"

"No, you've just been Punk'd, dumbass!" He couldn't help blurting out. A second later he apologised. "I'm sorry, I don't mean to take this out on you. Yes, it's real. I've spoken to Dad's lawyer as well as my own and they've confirmed it's genuine and legal. If I want to get my hands on that money I've got to get married within the next three months. Trust him to die so close to my thirtieth birthday, huh?"

Shaking his head, Lucas said, "I-I can't believe he'd do this to you. You'd think after what happened with his own marriage that he wouldn't want you to go through the same thing."

Nathan released a snort of laughter. "Of course he'd want me to go through the same thing. He lived to make my life a misery and now he's gone and I'm finally free, he springs this on me from beyond the grave. He knew full well I had no intention of ever getting married and that's why he decided to pull this stunt."

"So what are you going to do?"

"A part of me just wants to say fuck it but another part of me wants what's mine. Maybe I'm being selfish…I just don't know anymore."

"I need a drink," Lucas stated a few moments later after everything he had just heard had sunk in. "Do you want one?"

"Yeah, thanks. Make mine a double."

He nodded as he got up from his chair and went over to the mini bar. "Apart from the two of us and the lawyers you've discussed this with, who else do you think knows about this clause?"

"I've got no idea. On the flight here I wondered if my Mom knows but it'd be just like him to keep this to himself so that there was no likelihood of her revealing it to me out of spite or something. All these thoughts are going around and around in my head and I just don't know what do or think. The only thing I did know was that I had to talk to someone and that's when I called you."

"I'm glad you did." Walking over to him, he handed him a glass of bourbon before going back and sitting down in his chair. "Just out of curiosity, if you do decide to go ahead with this plan of his, who would you marry?"

"I've got no fucking clue. The women I tend to mix with aren't the marrying types if you get my drift."

Lucas couldn't help laughing. He knew only too well the types of women his cousin associated with. If he mentioned this to any one of them and they got wind of how much money was at stake, you could bet your life they would be hanging on until well after the three years were up.

"I'm glad you find this funny, Luke." Nathan scowled.

"I'm not laughing at you or this situation. I was just picturing you marrying one of the bimbos you normally hang out with. They'd take you to the cleaners, man, that is if they ever let you out of their sight once they found out how much money you'd eventually be worth."

"Tell me about it. No, if I decide to do this, then I need to find someone completely different. Someone real and someone I can trust with this."

Staring at his cousin, Lucas asked, "Wait! You mean you'd actually tell the woman the truth about why you were marrying her?"

"I think I'd have to. I know I have a reputation when it comes to the way I treat women but I'm not a heartless bastard. I'm not _him_."

"I know you're not. I wasn't suggesting that for a second. I just didn't think you'd tell anyone else about this…crazy plan."

"Well apart from you and the lawyers involved, she would be the only other person to know the truth. I'd have a sort of pre-nuptial agreement drawn up so that she couldn't tell anyone the truth about our marriage or claim any more money than I'd be giving her and…"

"You're going to pay a woman to marry you!?"

Nathan shook his head at his cousin's clueless behaviour. After draining his glass of bourbon, he said, "I don't think I have much of a choice in the matter. My birthday is in three months time and I need to be married by then so I'm in a bit of a hurry here. Plus, I'd basically be asking her to put her life on hold for three years while she's married to me so the least I can do is give her something at the end of the three years."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," he conceded.

"The whole thing would just be like another business deal. It would just be a marriage in name only."

"Right," Lucas said chuckling. "I'll believe that when I see it."

"Look, this whole thing is a damn nightmare and the last thing I need is to complicate it even further with sex. Like I said, the marriage would just be in name only."

Lucas frowned. "Be that as it may, you're going to need to make it look convincing to everyone around you."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I mean that if people found out that the whole thing was a sham just to get your hands on your inheritance, you'd probably lose any chance of getting the money. Even if you're not going to be sleeping with the new Mrs Scott, you need to make it appear to everyone on the outside that you are. You can't continue screwing around the way you do already."

Letting his cousin's words sink in, Nathan nodded in agreement. "You've got a point. Damn, it's going to be a long three years. Dad obviously thought I wouldn't do it but I'll show him. That money's not going anywhere except in my bank account."

Seeing the determined look in the other man's eyes, Lucas smiled. He knew that once Nathan had set his mind on something, he rarely, if ever, failed to get it or make it happen. He just hoped that the key players involved in this would come out unscathed.

"So, is there anyone you can think of who I should propose to?" Nathan asked jokily but seeing the serious look on his cousin's face, his expression sobered.

Hearing the unexpected question caused an image to suddenly pop into Lucas' head and his lips slowly curled up into a smile. "Hmm, you know, there might just be."


	3. Chapter Three

**Author's Notes:** Thanks so much for all of your reviews. :)

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**Chapter Three**

Nathan frowned when Lucas pulled up in front of the café their mothers co-owned and managed.

"Why have you brought me here? I thought I told you I didn't want anyone knowing I was back in town."

"Yeah you did, but there's someone I want you to meet."

"So what, you called and asked them to meet us here? Good thinking there, man. I was hoping to avoid my Mom on this visit."

Lucas sighed. "Just shut up and get your ass out of the car. And be nice."

He couldn't help smirking. "Hey, I'm always nice."

"If you say so."

The two men got out of the car and made the short walk to the café. The bell above the door jingled softly announcing their presence and Lucas entered first but instead of heading over to the counter, he walked over to one of the tables and sat down in the comfy armchair beside it.

"I'll have my usual."

"I guess I'm paying then," Nathan mumbled as he went over to the counter and waited for the woman behind it to turn around and serve him. He drummed his fingers on the countertop and looking around the establishment, he noticed that it was fairly empty and he wondered where his mother and Karen were.

"Hi, what can I get you?"

Turning his head slightly, he looked at the young woman in front of him and he found his lips curling up in a half-smile. Her wide, chocolate brown eyes captured his attention and he could feel himself getting lost in them.

"Hel-lo, I said what can I get you?"

Her voice jolted him out of his reverie and he coughed to clear his throat. "Oh, uh, sorry. Can I get two black coffees, please?"

She smiled politely before asking, "Regular or decaf?"

"Regular. I can't stand decaf."

"Yeah, me either," she agreed as she retrieved two cups and went over to grab the pot of coffee. "I mean, why drink coffee if you don't want a caffeine fix."

"Exactly," he replied with a chuckle. As he dug into his pocket for his wallet, he asked, "So, uh, you're new here, right?"

"Yeah."

"I don't remember seeing you on my last visit here and I'm sure I would've remembered that." His smile grew when he saw her cheeks blush. Digging into his pocket, he removed his wallet and took out a ten dollar bill and handed it over. Their fingers touched when she took the money from him and when her eyes briefly met his, he knew he hadn't been the only one to feel the spark of electricity that seemed to crackle between them.

She quickly turned and went over to the cash register and a moment later she was back and held out his change.

Nathan shook his head. "Keep the change."

"That's too much for a tip," she told him.

"I'll be the judge of that. I can't have you telling my Mom that her son's a lousy tipper."

Her eyes went wide for a moment and then she realised who he was. "You're Nathan."

He nodded and held out his hand for her to shake. "Yeah and you are?"

"I'm Haley."

"It's nice to meet you, Haley." Picking up his and Lucas' drinks, he gave her a smile and added, "I'll see you around," before turning and walking over to where his cousin sat.

"So, what do you think of her?" Lucas asked as he took his coffee and added some sugar to it.

"She seems nice."

"Yeah, she is. She's been working here for a few months now and our moms really like her."

Taking a sip of his coffee, Nathan looked around at the still empty café. "So when's this person you want me to meet gonna show up?"

Lucas laughed. "You just met her, dumbass."

"What?"

"You heard me. You told me the woman you wanted involved in this deal had to be different from those that you usually date, well Haley is different. You couldn't get someone more different from your usual type."

Turning in his seat, he watched the petite brunette as she wiped down the countertop and when she just happened to glance up at him, he saw her blush again before quickly turning away from his gaze.

"Yeah, she's definitely different."

"Different good?" Lucas asked already knowing the answer. He had watched the interaction between the two when his cousin had been getting their drinks and he was sure Haley was the right person to help him. While he didn't know her well, he just got a good feeling from her.

"Maybe."

"Don't 'maybe' me, man. She's a good person and if anyone is able to help you get your hands on that money, it'll be her. People are more likely to believe the 'love at first sight' thing if it was with Haley than if you tried to dupe them with some vapid airhead."

"Love at first sight? I think you've been watching too many Lifetime movies."

"Shut up. C'mon, you know I'm right."

"Maybe you are but like I already told you, this whole thing will just be a business deal. I'm not going to complicate things with sex or love or any of that crap."

"Fine, but you still need to make it look as natural as possible and I think she's the best one for the job. And by the way, love is not crap."

"I know and you don't need to go spouting off about you and Brooke. Speaking of, how is she by the way?"

"She's good and so is the baby. We can't wait for her to get here, you know."

"Yeah, I hear her hormones have been a bitch."

"You're not wrong but hopefully she'll get back to normal once the baby's born."

"Yeah right," Nathan mumbled under his breath.

"I heard that." Lucas couldn't help but laugh though. He loved his wife but there were times she drove him absolutely nuts. Still, he wouldn't change a thing.

"Okay, so how do I approach Haley about doing this, then? I mean, if she turns me down I can't have her telling everyone about it."

Lucas nodded. "Yeah. Look, just go over there now and ask her out. I know she's not working tomorrow so suggest you go to lunch somewhere and then afterwards, go to the park or something and take a walk. You need to speak to her where no one else is going to listen."

"Well why don't I just take her back to the house?"

"Because I get the impression she's not that type of girl. She doesn't strike me as being the kind of girl who's willing to go back to a guy's house on their first date and you don't want to scare her away before you at least ask her."

"You're right." He took another drink of his coffee before getting up from his seat and walking over to her. She had her back to him again as she bent down to put something into one of the storage cupboards and he got a glimpse of her lightly tanned skin peeking out from between her t-shirt and her jeans.

Taking a deep breath, he tried to compose himself and remember that if Haley was willing to go along with this charade, then he needed to stop thinking about her beautiful face, her curvy figure and what he just knew to be her soft, silky skin.

"Uh, Haley? Have you got a second?"

Standing up, Haley turned to face him and gave him a shy smile. "Sure, what can I get you?"

"Oh, uh, nothing. I was just, uh, wondering if you were doing anything for lunch tomorrow?"

"How do you know I'm not working tomorrow?" She asked as she tried to contain her surprise at his question.

"Lucas told me. I was thinking that if you didn't already have plans that maybe you'd like to have lunch with me."

"I…er…I don't…"

"Don't say no. Please?" He gave her what he knew to be his most sincere smile and he internally cheered when he saw her resolve crack.

"O-okay."

"There's a great pizzeria down by the park…"

She smiled. "I love that place. Uh, what time should I meet you there?"

"How about one o'clock?"

"Sure. I'll, uh, see you then."

"Good," he said smiling back at her. "I'd better go. Uh, can you do me a favour and not tell my Mom or Karen I was here? I want to surprise them," he lied.

Haley nodded. "My lips are sealed."

They shared another smile before he turned and went back over to his cousin. "C'mon, I need to get out of here before Mom gets back," he said quietly and he waited for the other man to get up which he did immediately.

After they both said another goodbye to Haley, they left the café and headed back to the car.

"So, what did she say? Is she gonna go out with you tomorrow?"

"Yeah, we're having lunch tomorrow and if things go well with that, I'll ask her if she wants to marry me."

Lucas laughed. "I'm sorry, it just sounds so funny when you put it like that." Unlocking the car and then getting in, his laughter subsided as he waited for Nathan to do the same. "Listen Nate, whatever happens with this, don't hurt her. She seems like a really nice person and I didn't suggest her so you could treat her like crap just so you can get your hands on your Dad's money."

"The last thing I want to do is hurt her, Luke. And anyway, things might go badly tomorrow at lunch and I might decide not to ask her. I'm just gonna play it by ear and do what feels right."

"Okay, because Brooke happens to like Haley and if you hurt her, then she'll come down on you like a ton of bricks and kick your ass."

"Great! You couldn't have told me she was friendly with Brooke before I asked her out."

Lucas snorted. "Now where would the fun have been in that?"


	4. Chapter Four

**Chapter Four**

The following day, Nathan made sure he got to the restaurant about fifteen minutes early so that he would hopefully be the first one there. He needed to feel in control of the situation and he knew if he was rushing to get there, then that control would have been lost and he would have felt out of sorts. That was something he couldn't let happen. Too much was at stake and time was definitely of the essence.

At five minutes to one he saw her walking towards him and he found himself smiling. If he thought she looked good yesterday, then that was nothing compared to how she looked right now. Her auburn hair had been left down but the sides of it had been pulled back and she was wearing a knee length black and white summer dress which displayed her tanned legs nicely. As she came to stand in front of him, he noticed her toes peeking out from the black sandals she had on her feet and he smiled at the different pastel colours she had painted her nails.

"Hi," he said when she was close enough to hear him.

"Hi. Have you been waiting long?"

He shook his head and lied. "No, I only just got here."

"Oh okay. Uh, should we go inside?"

"Yeah. I actually booked a table, I know how busy this place can sometimes get," he told her as he opened the door to the restaurant and gestured for her to enter first.

The pizzeria was a family run business and had a nice homely feel to it. Nathan hoped that the overall ambience of the place would help relax both of them and help him decide whether Haley was the right person to help him out. Like his cousin, he too got a good feeling from her.

After they had been seated and had given their orders to their waiter, they sat there in silence for a few minutes.

"So, uh, how long have you been in Tree Hill?" He finally asked after he had taken a sip of his mineral water.

"Almost four months now."

"And do you like it?"

"Yeah," she said giving him a smile. "I really do. Your mom and your aunt have been great and I really like Brooke and Lucas."

Returning her smile, he said, "I'm glad. They're good people."

The awkward silence returned and was only broken by Haley clearing her throat. "You live in Chicago, right?"

"Yeah. I moved there a year or so after I finished college. I studied architecture and I now have my own design company."

"That's great," she told him. "Do you miss living here or do you prefer the big city?"

Nathan thought about it for a moment before responding. "I think I prefer the big city and not having everyone knowing your business. Don't get me wrong, I miss my family but when I'm here, it's like…"

"Living in a fishbowl?" she suggested.

"Yeah." He chuckled. "That's exactly it. Sometimes it feels like I can't walk down the streets here without people looking at me."

"Paranoid much?" she teased and he laughed at her words.

"Maybe I am. So, tell me about yourself. I'm sure it'll be a lot more interesting than hearing about me."

Picking up her own glass, Haley sipped her water. "There's not really much to tell. I'm from Georgia and I moved here around four months ago."

"You're not giving me much to go on here, Haley."

"Okay, what exactly do you want to know about me?" She asked, raising one perfectly arched eyebrow in question.

"Let's start off with the easy stuff. How about your age, how many brothers and sisters you have, favourite colour…"

"Don't want to know much, do you? Okay fine. I'm twenty years old, I have five brothers and sisters and my favourite colour is purple. How about you?"

Nathan stared at her in surprise. She was only twenty? She didn't look it. He could see she was obviously younger than him but there was a maturity about her that belied her real age. What the fuck was Lucas doing setting him up with someone so young?

"Nathan, are you okay?"

He nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine."

At that moment, they were interrupted by the waiter bringing over their plates of food and he breathed a sigh of relief that they would have something to focus their attention on.

Haley could feel something was off but she didn't know what. She picked at her pasta dish, all of a sudden not feeling as hungry as she had been before. "This is really good," she said hoping to break the silence and she watched as his blue eyes looked across into hers.

"Yeah, it is. So, you're from a big family, huh?"

"Uh huh. I've got three brothers and two sisters, I'm the youngest."

"Aww, the baby of the family," he teased.

"Watch it mister, I'll have you know there's nothing baby-ish about me."

"I can see that," he whispered but it was loud enough for her to hear and she blushed. He couldn't help smiling at how cute she looked when her cheeks flushed with embarrassment.

"How about you? Do you have any siblings?"

Chewing and then swallowing a bite of his pizza, he shook his head. "No, I'm an only child but Lucas is almost like a brother to me. I spent a lot of time with him and his parents when I was growing up. Things weren't always the best for me at home, especially with my Dad," he found himself revealing.

Nathan didn't know why he did that but there was just something about her that made him want to be honest with her. He never revealed things about himself or his family, not even to the friends he had in Chicago. Yet here he was, telling a complete stranger about himself. He was brought out of his thoughts when he felt her hand cover his which was resting on the table.

"I'm sorry, Nathan."

"It's okay. He's gone now and I know I should be sorry about that but…"

"It's okay not to be," she told him, a soft smile gracing her features.

"Thanks." They sat there for a moment longer just looking at each other before they both looked away and continued eating.

Glancing up at her and seeing that she was concentrating on her food, he took a moment to study her and he liked what he saw. A strong sense of wanting to get to know her better took a hold of him and he realised that spending the next three years together didn't repulse him at all.

Marriage had been something he never wanted for himself, not after seeing his parents destructive relationship. When they had finally divorced, it had been a huge relief for him and, he suspected, for a lot of other people in the town who had had to deal with seeing their sometimes very public fights. Unfortunately, that hadn't been the case with both of them deciding to continue living in the same town, albeit in different parts.

But now, looking at the pretty young woman sitting opposite him, he felt like they could at least have a solid friendship and who knows, he thought to himself, maybe something stronger would develop from that as time passed.

Looking up from her food, Haley caught his eye and she blushed again at the intense way he was looking at her. It was making her feel self-conscious and so she asked, "Do I have something on my face?"

"Huh? No, no you don't. Sorry, I didn't mean to stare." He could feel his own face growing warm at having been caught.

"Can I ask you something?" she asked a few moments later.

"Sure, what is it?"

"Why did you ask me out? I mean, we only just met yesterday and…"

"I like you," he found himself blurting out without thinking about what he was saying. Once the words had passed his lips, he realised they were completely true and he wasn't lying to her, something he was grateful for.

"You don't know me and I don't know you."

"So let's get to know each other."

"I don't know if that's such a good idea. I mean, I work for your family for a start and…"

"So what? I don't see how that's a problem."

"You wouldn't. Look, I don't mean to be rude but I can't afford to lose this job. How do I know if us being friends or whatever isn't going to cause a problem somewhere down the line and I'll lose my job because of it?"

"That would never happen, Haley. My Mom and Karen aren't like that. They'd be more likely to kick my ass for hurting or upsetting you, not that that's my intention or anything," he quickly added. Seeing her check her watch, he asked, "Are you supposed to be somewhere?"

Ignoring his question, she began to get up from her seat but she stilled when he placed a hand on her wrist. "I've got to go."

"Where?"

"That's my business."

"Let me give you a ride there. My car's just parked down the street."

"It's fine, I'd rather walk."

"C'mon, please?"

Haley sighed as she looked into his face. "Okay."

Smiling at her, he gestured for their waiter to bring over the check which he did a few minutes later. After leaving the money together with a tip on the table, he got up from his seat and went around and helped Haley to her feet. Without realising what he was doing, he took her hand in his and led her out of the restaurant and it was only when they were outside that he realised what he had done and he reluctantly released her hand.

"The, uh, car's this way," he told her and they walked side by side in silence. "So, where am I taking you?"

She took a deep breath before answering him in a quiet voice. "The bar on Crawford Street."

He didn't need to ask the name of it as everyone had heard of _Temptation._ Hell, he and the guys had used their fake IDs in there several times as soon as they had looked old enough to pass for twenty-one.

"I take it you know the one I mean," she couldn't help saying despite already knowing the answer from the tell-tale silence.

"Uh…yeah. Why am I taking you there?" He turned to look at her and saw the way her eyes were focused on the ground.

She waited until they had reached the car and were inside it before answering him. "I work there."

"Oh." Her sudden laughter made him turn to look at her sharply and she gave him a reassuring smile. "I'm not one of the strippers if that's what you're thinking. I work behind the bar."

"But you're not twenty-one yet."

"I, uh, lied about my age. It was the only job I could get when I arrived here and I was desperate."

"Why did you come to Tree Hill?" he couldn't help asking, curious to know her story.

Sighing, she rested her head back against the headrest behind her. "I had to get away from all the pitying stares I kept getting. I'm from a small town in Georgia where everyone knows everyone else's business. My family has never been rich, we've all had to work hard for things but when my Dad was laid off work things got really hard. Thankfully, my brothers and sisters have all finished their college educations and it was just me that was left. I had to drop out because we could no longer afford it."

"Weren't you entitled to financial aid or something?"

She shook her head. "Apparently, the money my Mom was bringing home was just over the limit which would have let me qualify for financial help. I couldn't ask them to dip into their savings although they did offer. The last thing they wanted was for me to drop out but I had no choice. I was already working in a coffee shop just off campus and I managed to get some extra shifts and then I got another part-time job working in a bookstore but…"

"But you couldn't keep up with your studies because of all the time you were spending working?" he finished for her and he watched her nod her answer.

"Yes, that's pretty much it. My Dad wasn't the only one in our town to be laid off from the electricity company he worked for but because he's older, he's found it difficult finding another job. I got a letter though yesterday from my Mom telling me that he and a couple of other guys are thinking about going into business together and from what she's said, it looks promising."

Nathan smiled at her. "That's great and I hope it works out for them. Does that mean that you'll be going back home and back to school?"

"No. I really can't face going back to the same school. Even some of my so-called friends turned on me when I had to drop out. I'm happy here and…"

"You like working at i_Temptation/i_?"

"Not really. The people I work with are really nice but some of the guys we get in are pretty sleazy. I just meant I like this town and I like working at the café."

"So quit the bar job."

"I can't. The money I earn at the café isn't enough to pay my rent and utilities let alone groceries."

"Does anyone else know you work at the bar?"

"I haven't told anyone except you. It's not exactly the sort of place you want to put on your resumé," she joked and felt better when she saw him return her smile.

As Nathan looked into her face, he made a decision there and then. He knew if he married her, he could give her financial security, that she could give up the bar job and go back to school. The only problem was that he didn't think she'd want to leave Tree Hill but he could get around that. He had the best people working for him in Chicago and he had a more than adequate office at the house he owned here in Tree Hill that he could work from.

"I'm going to ask you something Haley, and I know it's going to sound really weird but I promise, there is a logical explanation to it. All you have to do is say yes."

Haley chuckled. "Right, I've heard that before. Yes what?"

"Yes I will," he teased with a straight face.

"C'mon Nathan, I'm going to be late for work. Yes I will what?"

"Yes you will marry me," he finally said and watched her mouth drop open in a mixture of shock and surprise as she stared back at him. It looked like it might take a while for him to get an answer out of her.


	5. Chapter Five

**Chapter Five**

"W-what did you just say?" Haley finally managed to spit out several minutes later.

"I asked you to marry me."

"That's what I thought you said but…uh…I don't understand. You can't be serious about this. I only just met you yesterday for all of five minutes."

"I am serious. Look, what I'm about to tell you has to stay between us. You can't tell anyone; not my Mom or Karen and especially not Brooke. The last thing I need is for the whole town to find out about this."

Tilting her head to one side, she looked at him curiously. "Uh, okay. I'm not sure anyone would believe me anyway but I promise not to say a word."

"Thanks." Nathan took a few deep breaths before starting to tell her the story. "As you know, my Dad died recently and, as you also know, we didn't get on. Some days were better than others but on the whole our relationship was very strained. He never forgave me for turning my back on a professional basketball career and felt that I did it out of spite."

"Did you?" she couldn't resist asking.

"No. As a kid I always dreamed of a career in the NBA but as I got older, it just didn't seem as important as it once was. Anyway, once I'd made up my mind about doing something else, that was it for our relationship."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be. I tried to make peace with him on a several occasions but he wouldn't have it. After he'd gotten sick though, I thought we'd begun to form some kind of a relationship but it would seem he was waiting to have the last laugh."

"I-I don't understand. What do you mean?"

"His lawyer came to see me the other day and handed me a copy of his Will. In it it states that I'll only receive my inheritance if I'm married by the time I'm thirty which is in just three months time. If I'm not married by then all I'll get is the house I grew up in and the same will be true if the marriage lasts for less than three years."

"Oh! So that's why you proposed."

"Yeah. You're probably wondering why I haven't just asked someone I already know, right?"

Haley nodded. "That was gonna be my next question."

He gave her a half-smirk. "Ha, I beat you to it. I don't know how much you know about me from what my Mom, Lucas or Brooke might have said, but I don't really do relationships. I pretty much just…um…"

"Screw?" she offered.

"Uh, to put it bluntly, yes. Seeing the wreck that was my parents marriage put me off for life and my Dad knew that. This stipulation is just his evil way of getting his own back on me for not doing everything he wanted me to."

Haley blew out a puff of air as everything he told her sunk in. "Do you mind me asking how much money we're talking about?"

"Two hundred and fifty million dollars."

Her mouth dropped open in shock. Never in a million years had she been expecting him to say that. "Ohmigod! And to think I was just about to tell you that money isn't everything."

Nathan laughed. "You're right, it isn't everything. I'm successful in my own right and I've got more than enough money to live comfortably but it's the principle of the matter. He really made me suffer as a kid and I think I'm entitled to that money. There's so much good that could come of it, you know."

"You mean like giving it away to charities and stuff?"

"Yeah as well as sharing it out amongst the rest of the family. If I don't do this, then the money will go to the charities of his choice but I just know that the money won't reach people that really need it. They'll go to people he was friendly with from big corporations who are probably as corrupt as he was."

"He was corrupt?"

"No, not really," he said shaking his head before adding, "but he did have some shady business dealings."

"So you don't feel like proposing to one of your…um…dates and getting them to help you with this instead of me."

"Got it in one. If they got wind of how much money we're talking about, I'd be tied down for life and…"

"And that's not what you want?"

Looking into her wide eyes and seeing the way she was watching him, he realised that his answer to that question was no longer 'yes'. If he was married to her, he had a feeling he wouldn't mind spending the rest of his life with her. As he seemed to relax at the idea, a warmth spread throughout his body and he found his lips curling up into a smile.

"I'm not so sure anymore," he finally replied. "I do know that I wouldn't want to be tied down to one of my dates, as you so eloquently put it, for the rest of my life. I'd sooner live on the streets," he joked.

"Well, we can't have that, can we?"

"What does that mean?" he asked curiously.

"Just give a second to get this straight. If I agree to do this, what exactly do you have in mind?"

He bit his bottom lip to stop himself smiling. "Okay, firstly we'd have to get married. Like I said, my birthday is in three months time and I need to be married before then. The marriage would be, um, one of convenience and…"

"You mean, in name only?"

"Right." As he said the words, he felt a weight settle in his chest at the thought of them being together but not really being _together_.

"Okay. Anything else?"

The weight felt even heavier when he realised that that didn't seem to bother her. "We'd have to stay married for three years, probably a little longer than that to make it look convincing to everyone. It's only fair that you get something out of giving up three years of your life for me so I'd pay you five million dollars—half after the wedding and then the rest after the three years were up."

Haley's jaw dropped open yet again at hearing what he had just said and she quickly began shaking her head from side to side. "No, no way. I-I couldn't take that amount of money from you. It wouldn't be right and…"

"You'd deserve it, Haley. If you agree to marry me, it's only fair that you get something out of it. For the time that we're together, we can't risk anyone finding out that the marriage isn't real so neither of us is going to be able to date anyone else and so it's only right that you're compensated."

She huffed for a moment but then finally said, "Okay fine, but I'm not letting you give me that much."

"How about two million then – one now and then one after the three years have come to an end? Just think of how you'll be able to help your family and you'd be able to go back to school. You could do anything you wanted."

"It still seems like too much, Nathan."

He smiled as he realised she was absolutely the right person for the job. Money wasn't something that seemed important to her and it was refreshing to meet someone like her after all the gold-diggers he usually came into contact with.

"Well it doesn't seem enough to me." He had every intention of putting five million in an account for her regardless of what she said.

"How are we going to convince people that we're in love and want to get married? I mean, we've literally only just met."

"Haven't you ever heard of love at first sight?"

She scoffed. "Yeah right, I've got a feeling you believe in that about as much as I do."

He joined in her laughter. "Okay, you got me. But I'm pretty sure we can convince them if we put our minds to it."

"There's so much to think about and…"

Taking her hand in his, he rubbed his thumb back and forth over her knuckles. "We can figure it out together but first I need to know, are you prepared to help me?"

Pausing for a moment, Haley composed herself as she made what she knew would be the biggest decision of her life. Looking into his clear blue eyes, she smiled softly. "Yes Nathan, I'll marry you."


	6. Chapter Six

**Author's Notes:** Thanks so much for all of your lovely comments. It's very much appreciated and I'm glad you're all enjoying the story.

* * *

**Chapter Six**

The next evening, Nathan was picking Haley up after she had ended her shift at the café. When she had told him she wouldn't be working at the bar, he had suggested they meet up and start making plans for their forthcoming marriage. After discovering she liked Chinese food, he stopped off at a local take-out joint before making his way to the café.

Sitting in his car, he tapped his fingers on the steering wheel in time to the music that was playing on the radio. As he still hadn't told his mother of his presence, he decided to wait for Haley outside because the last thing they needed was to be bombarded with twenty questions when they hadn't had a chance to discuss anything.

A few minutes later, he saw her walking towards the car and he felt himself begin to smile. His eyes wandered up and down her body and he couldn't believe that anyone could look that good in a pair of jeans and a simple T-shirt. Damn, he was so done for. The next three years were going to be torturous for him.

"Hey," Haley greeted him as she opened the door and climbed into the passenger seat.

"Hey," he replied. "How was work?"

"Good thanks. How about you?"

"It was fine. I made some calls and I've managed to free myself up for the next three weeks so we can start putting things into motion." After giving her a reassuring smile, he started the engine before safely pulling onto the street and making the short journey to his house.

They drove in silence, the only sound was the music quietly playing in the background. Hearing her cough a couple of times, he looked at her and asked, "Are you okay?"

She nodded. "Uh huh. Can I, um, ask you something?" She finally said a few moments later.

"Sure you can. What is it?"

Keeping her eyes on the road ahead, she said, "You know before when you said we need to, uh, convince people that this is a real marriage, well I was just wondering…" she trailed off as she tried to word what she wanted to say.

"Wondering what?" Coming to a stop light, he turned his head to look at her. "Haley?"

Taking a long, slow breath, she turned her own head to meet his eyes. "What exactly did you…um…mean when you said that?"

Her question took him by surprise and he wasn't sure how to respond to it. "I…er…I…"

"The thing is, if we want people to believe that this marriage is real, then we need to, um, look comfortable together, right?"

"Right."

"Well I don't know about you but I'm feeling as nervous as hell."

He laughed before saying, "Thank god for that. That's exactly how I'm feeling. You're right though, we need this to look real and for that to happen, then we need to look like…"

"We're in love?"

His mouth went dry as he heard her say the words but he found himself moving his head up and down in agreement. "Yeah." Damn, he thought, cursing himself when he heard how husky his voice sounded.

"So, I guess we should…"

Nathan raised an eyebrow as he anticipated what she was about to suggest. "Should what?"

Before she could answer, a car honked from behind and looking at the road ahead, he saw that the light had changed from red to green and placing his foot on the accelerator, he started moving forward. "What should we do?" He asked again a couple of minutes later.

"We should get comfortable with each other."

He felt a smile tugging at the corners of his lips. "And how do you propose we do that?"

Haley could feel herself blushing but she forced herself to say the words. "We, uh, need to kiss."

Sucking in a mouthful of air, he quickly turned and glanced at her and saw her flushed cheeks. Her words made him press his foot harder on the peddle in an anxious bid to get to their destination even quicker. "K-kiss?" God, he sounded like an adolescent schoolboy.

"I, um, just figured that we should…er…do that privately together so that if we need to do it in public…"

"Then we'll look more comfortable?"

"Exactly. I mean, your family and friends are gonna think it's weird that we're, you know, together and yet they never see us kiss or hold hands. We need to be…"

"Convincing."

"Yes."

Arriving at their destination, he put the car into park and turned off the engine. "Well it's just as well that we've got the rest of the evening to do that. Oh, and I picked up some dinner for us so we can start getting to know each other and then, uh…"

Haley quickly nodded, silently telling him that she knew what he meant. Opening their doors, they got out of the car and after grabbing the bag of food from the backseat, he led the way to his front door.

Surveying her surroundings, she looked back at him open-mouthed. "Wow! This place is beautiful," she told him before her eyes returned to the view of the sea that lay in front of them. "Is this the house you grew up in?"

"No. This is the house I bought a couple of years ago and it's where I stay when I'm back in town. I never felt comfortable staying at the family home, especially not with my Dad there. I've always loved the beach and I remember this particular house from when I was a kid so as soon as I saw it come on the market I snapped it up."

She smiled. "I can see why. The view is breathtaking."

After he had unlocked and opened the door, he turned to let her inside first but he saw her standing there totally transfixed by what she was seeing and in that split-second, he knew the feeling except he wasn't looking at the familiar sight of the sea view.

Coughing to clear his throat, he said, "Come on, the food's getting cold." Taking her small hand in his, he led her inside before shutting the door behind them.

* * *

Sitting on the floor of the living room, they ate their food in a semi-comfortable silence.

"You don't mind eating out of the cartons do you?"

"Are you kidding? That's the only way that take-out should be eaten," she told him with a grin.

"I agree. There is an actual dining room here but I prefer things a bit more relaxed."

"Me too. Now, hand over that carton of egg fried rice."

He laughed. "Here you go." Handing over the carton, he watched her eat a generous portion of it and he couldn't help liking the fact that she obviously enjoyed her food unlike some of the stick insects he'd associated with in the past who would pick at a salad.

"I'm curious to know, what were you studying at college?"

Swallowing the mouthful of soda she had just taken, she replied, "Music and English. I was hoping to maybe go into teaching young kids after I'd graduated. Either that or look into the whole music therapy thing."

"Music therapy?"

"Yeah. Music has been known to help kids with disabilities or learning difficulties and it's just something that really interested me when I read an article about it a few years ago."

"That sounds great. I could see you doing something like that," he told her.

"But you don't even know me."

"Maybe not but I already know you're a good person and I'll just bet you're really good with kids."

Once again she found herself blushing. "Uh thanks. I've got a few nieces and nephews from my older siblings and I'd often get roped into babysitting duty. Not that I ever minded, they're pretty good kids…well, most of the time."

Looking at her, he had a sudden vision of her cradling a baby in her arms and he felt his whole body grow warm. What was wrong with him? A couple of days ago he hadn't even contemplated marriage for himself and yet here he was picturing his soon-to-be pretend wife having his baby. Picking up his can of soda from the coffee table beside him, he took a long drink hoping that the cold liquid would help cool him down.

"Are you okay?" Haley asked when she saw his face all flushed.

"Huh? Uh yeah, it's just a bit warm in here. Would you mind if I opened up the French doors?"

"No. I love the smell of the sea air," she told him as she watched him get up from the floor and walk over to open the doors. We don't have any local beaches back home."

Returning to his seat on the floor, he asked, "And where is that exactly?"

"Northwood Hills," she informed him. Seeing his face scrunch up slightly, a soft laugh escaped her mouth. "It's okay that you've never heard of it. It's not the most exciting place to have grown up but it's home."

"It sounds nice."

"It is."

They shared another smile before continuing to eat their food.

"So, I was thinking…about how we should start doing this."

"Okay. What have you come up with so far?"

"Well, I figured that we need people to start seeing us together so I thought that tomorrow when you're working at the café, I should..."

"Just one problem with that? Isn't your mom going to think it's weird that we all of a sudden know each other? She still doesn't know you're back in town yet."

"Crap! I'd forgotten about that."

Suddenly a light-bulb went off in Haley's head and she grinned. "Actually, maybe that works in our favour."

"How do you mean?"

"Think about it; you walk in on the basis of visiting her and your aunt and we pretend that we're only seeing each other for the first time. We just need to make sure she sees us checking each other out and that way we can use that whole 'love at first sight' thing you mentioned yesterday. What do you think?"

Nathan's face lit up as he smiled at her suggestion. "I think that's brilliant. I'll casually ask her about you and hopefully she'll make the formal introduction," he said chuckling. "I'll have to call Lucas and let him kno…"

"Lucas knows about this?"

"Uh…yeah. He was the first person I called after I'd read the Will and because he couldn't come to me what with Brooke being so close to having the baby, I flew down here."

"Right." She was quiet for a few moments before saying, "He put me forward for this, didn't he?"

Knowing there was no point in lying to her, he slowly nodded. "Yes. He knew that I didn't want to marry the type of woman I normally associate with and I was just joking around when I asked him if there was anyone he knew. The next thing I know he's driving me to the café and telling me there's somebody he wanted me to meet. I figured he'd arranged for whoever it was to meet us there but then after I'd got our drinks, I asked him when we'd be meeting this person and he told me that I just had."

Looking into his face for a moment, she could see he was being honest with her and she finally let her lips curl into a half-smile. "Yeah, that sounds like something Lucas would do. Do you think he's told Brooke?"

"No, I've asked him not to say anything to her or anyone else. I know he hates keeping secrets from her but there would be no point going ahead with this if she knew because the whole town would be aware of what's going on."

"That's a bit harsh, Nathan."

"You don't know her like I do. I've known her since we were kids and she's always loved to gossip. She wouldn't be able to resist telling at least one person and it only takes that happening before everyone else would find out about it. This whole thing needs to stay just between the two of us and Lucas."

"Okay. I'm not sure anyone would believe me anyway if I told them about this," she teased.

"Yeah, thank god," he teased back.

"So, tomorrow is us just meeting each other for the first time in front of your mom and Karen…"

"Yeah. I'll make sure she sees I'm definitely interested in you and no doubt I'll get a warning about leaving you alone because you're a good girl."

"Knows all about your, um, habits does she?"

"Unfortunately yes. I'm sure she gets her information from Brooke."

"What happens after that?"

"I figured we should maybe date for a week or two and then we can elope."

Haley's mouth dropped open at hearing him say that in such a matter of fact way. "Elope?"

"Yeah. We're pretty short of time and us getting engaged and then arranging a quickie wedding is just going to raise too many questions. This way we can just say we got caught up in the moment and couldn't wait to get married."

She bit her lip to keep herself from smiling at his explanation which actually made a lot of sense. Doing it this way would certainly avoid her having to get her family involved although she did dread telling them she had gotten married behind their backs."

Shifting forward on the floor, he moved closer to her and placed a hand on top of hers which was resting in her lap. "You can still back out if you want to. I'll completely understand. I know I'm asking a helluva lot and…"

Placing her free hand on top of his, she gave it a squeeze. "No, I said I'd do it and I will. It's just that ever since I was a little girl I'd always pictured getting married in a church with all my family and friends around me."

"I-I'm sorry. Look, let's just forget it and…"

"No. Nathan, it's okay. Besides, I can have all that if I ever get married again," she said giving him a crooked smile.

For some reason, the thought of her being married to anyone else left a sour taste in his mouth but he found himself quietly responding with, "Yeah."

"I'll be working at the café all day tomorrow so…"

"I've got some things to do in the morning but I'll try and get there around lunchtime."

"Okay."

As they sat there opposite each other, neither of them realised that their hands were still touching.

"Listen, would you do me a favour?"

"Another one? I'm already marrying you," she teased.

"Funny."

"What's the favour?"

"Quit working at the bar. I hate the thought of you working there and if we're gonna be getting married…"

"It won't be appropriate for people to discover that the wife of _the_ Nathan Scott works at a strip bar, right?"

"I hadn't considered that but yeah, you're right. What I was actually going to say though was that you won't be needing the money you earn from there."

"I need the money to pay my apartment and…"

"No, you won't. You'll be moving in here with me. It's going to look a bit weird if my wife continues living in her own apartment while I'm either here or in Chicago."

Haley laughed. "Do you know, I hadn't even thought about how things were going to change after we'd be married. I'm such a ditz."

"No, you're not. Believe me, I've met tons of ditzes and you're definitely not one of them. I knew that from the second I saw you the other day."

She felt herself blush at his compliment. "Uh, thank you." Coughing to clear her throat, she said, "I'll go there tomorrow after my shift at the café and hand in my resignation."

"I'll take you."

"You don't have to, Nathan."

"I want to."

"Okay. My shift finishes at four."

He nodded. Having her sitting so close to him, his eyes wandered down to her lips and he had a sudden urge to kiss her. Remembering her words from earlier on, he smiled at what he was going to say next.

"Do you want to, uh, try the kissing thing now? I mean, the sooner we get started the more comfortable we're likely to feel doing it for the benefit of others."

Feeling his eyes on her mouth, she unconsciously licked her lips. She couldn't dispute the fact that she really wanted to kiss him and see what it felt like but there was something nagging at her, telling her that it wasn't quite right. If she wasn't careful, it would be all too easy to fall for the handsome man sitting in front of her and she couldn't let that happen. This was nothing more than a business deal, she told herself firmly.

"Haley? Are you alright?"

His words broke her out of her thoughts and she nodded. "I-I'm fine."

"So, should we…"

"No, I don't think so." As she said the words, she looked down at her lap but she couldn't resist letting her eyes flicker to his and she was almost sure she had seen a flash of disappointment flicker in them before it disappeared. No, she had to be mistaken.

"Oh…right."

"It's not th--"

"It's okay, I understand."

"No, you don't." She kept a firm hold of his hand which she had just realised she was still touching and stopped him from moving away from her. "Tomorrow's supposed to be the first time we meet, right? Well, we need to look sort of awkward and uncomfortable around each other to make any instant…um…attraction between us seem realistic. If we practice kissing each other, then we're going to lose that edge we'll have to make this believable."

Nathan let her words sink and when they had, he realised she had a valid point. He nodded as he spoke. "I guess you're right but what you don't yet know is that I don't really get nervous and awkward when meeting new people. Especially women."

"I've already seen evidence of that," she told him with a smirk playing at the corners of her mouth. "I do though and both Deb and Karen have seen that. The couple of times I've been hit on at work they've teased me about it."

"You get hit on at the café?"

She gave him a stare. "Yes. Is that so hard to believe?"

"No! No, that's not what I meant when I said that. I just…"

"Maybe you should quit while you're ahead," she suggested.

"Definitely. But for the record I'm sorry, I really didn't mean to offend you."

"You didn't." Glancing at her watch, she saw that it was starting to get late. "I'd better get going. I've got to be at the café for eight and I should really prepare for my performance with you tomorrow," she joked and he laughed in response.

"C'mon, I'll drive you home."

"You don't have to. I can call a cab and…"

"I insist."

"Nathan, I really…"

"Nope, not listening. I'm taking you home and that's final," he said cutting her off before she could finish. Getting up from the floor, he gathered up the empty take-out cartons and took them into the kitchen ready to dispose of them when he got back. Going back into the living room, he saw her pick up his phone and quickly making his way over to her, he took the phone out of her hands and pressed the cancel button before placing it back down on the table.

"Nathan!"

"You were calling a cab, weren't you?" He took her silence as confirmation that he was right and he asked, "Why don't you want me to drive you home?"

Taking a deep breath, she finally replied, "Because where I'm living isn't all that nice."

He sighed. "Haley, that doesn't matter to me. I don't think less of people because they don't have much money or they live in an area that isn't considered as good as other parts of the town. I'm not like that."

"I know you're not and I'm usually not either but…I just suddenly felt embarrassed about you seeing where I live."

"You don't have to feel embarrassed around me. My Dad was the only snob in the family and now he's gone, you're pretty much safe."

"Thanks…you know, for making me feel better."

"You're welcome. And besides, you'll only be living there for another week or two. As soon as we're married, we'll move you in here and this will be your home."

Taking a step forward, she placed her hands on his shoulders and leaning up, she kissed him on the cheek. "You know, people are going to think I'm marrying you for your money," she teased as she drew back from him.

With his hand placed around her waist to keep her near and a smirk plastered on his face, he replied, "Well they'd be wrong. I'm marrying you for my money."


	7. Chapter Seven

**Author's Notes:** Thanks so much for all of your great comments.

* * *

**Chapter Seven **

At just after twelve-thirty the next day, Nathan entered the café and realised he had made a mistake in choosing that time of day. The place was pretty busy with the lunchtime trade and, out of the corner of his eye, he could see Haley carrying plates of food over to one of the tables. As always seemed to be the case when he saw her, he found himself smiling.

"Nathan?"

Hearing his mother's voice, he turned to where she was standing and faced her. "Uh, hey Mom."

Deb Scott moved closer and embraced her son, feeling his body immediately stiffen at the contact and she inwardly sighed. "What are you doing here?" she asked as she released him sooner than she would have liked.

"I, uh, had some things to take care of in town and plus I thought Lucas might need some moral support when Brooke has the kid and he's outnumbered two to one."

She chuckled. "Yep, he's going to have his hands full when he's faced with a mini version of Brooke, especially when the little one starts talking."

"I'll make sure I'm in Chicago when that happens," he teased.

Smiling at him, she asked, "Can I get you something to eat, honey?"

Following her over to the counter, he sat down on one of the stools. "I'll have a cup of coffee and a piece of Aunt Karen's mud pie, thanks."

"Coming right up."

While he waited for his coffee and dessert, he again let his eyes wander around the room and when he found Haley, he let his eyes linger on her while she chatted with one of the customers. He couldn't help admiring the way her jeans clung to her curves and he definitely liked what he saw. The way that short T-shirt of hers rode up slightly when she leaned forward was really…"

"Here you go, Nate." Getting no response from him, Deb followed his line of sight and quickly realised what…or rather who he was looking at and her lips curled up in a half smile. Some things never changed. "Nathan?"

"Huh? Oh, thanks Mom," he said when he saw his food in front of him and picking up his cup, he took a sip of the hot liquid.

"I see you've noticed our Haley."

"Haley?" He asked, feigning ignorance.

"Uh huh. You know, the waitress you were staring at."

"I wasn't staring."

"Whatever you say," she replied teasingly. "So, how long are you in town for?"

"I'm not sure yet. I mean, Brooke's due any day, right, and I just figured I'd spend some time down here with everyone. That's okay isn't it?"

"Of course it is. You know I love having you back home. If you haven't already made plans, how about you come over for dinner tonight?"

Nathan wasn't sure how to respond. He remembered he was taking Haley to the bar after her shift so she could hand in her resignation and he had been hoping to hang out with her afterwards, but now it looked like that was a bust. If he wanted his Mom to be on side when he broke the news of their marriage, he needed to keep her as sweet as possible.

"Sure, that sounds good," he finally said. "Is seven o'clock okay?"

"That's fine." Deb was just about to turn away and head into the kitchen when she saw Haley approaching the counter.

"Would you mind if I took my break now, Deb? Everyone's got their food so I should be okay for five minutes."

"Yes, that's fine. Actually, while you're here Haley, I'd like to introduce you to my son Nathan."

Smiling at her employer, she then turned to face him and she couldn't help blushing at the intense way he seemed to be looking at her. In that moment, she realised that it would be all too easy to forget that this was purely for show. Time stood still as their eyes locked and held and when Nathan held out his hand to her, she took it and quietly gasped at the way her skin tingled at his touch.

As the two continued to stare at each other, Deb watched them and a frown creased her forehead. There was something in her son's eyes that she couldn't remember ever having seen before and while, granted, she had never really met any of the women he dated, there was something here that seemed different and she wasn't sure she liked it. Sensing that neither of them were about to break their staring contest anytime soon, she coughed to clear her throat and it managed to bring them back to the present.

"It's, um, nice to meet you, Haley." Nathan finally managed to say.

"Uh, you too. I've heard a lot about you from your mom and your aunt."

"All good I hope?"

Looking over at Deb, Haley winked at her before saying, "Now that would be telling, wouldn't it?"

The older woman forced herself to smile back at her and a moment later she saw Haley walking away from them and her son's eyes fixed on her retreating form.

"Nathan?"

"Huh?"

"I was just wondering if there was anything special you wanted for dinner tonight?"

"No, anything you want to serve is fine with me. So, uh, how long has Haley worked here for?"

"A few months now. Why?"

"No reason, I was just curious. I don't remember ever seeing her around here before."

Pouring herself a cup of coffee, the older woman smiled at him. "That's because she's only just moved to Tree Hill. She's a very sweet girl though and she's a real hard worker."

"Yeah, she seems nice."

"She is," she replied before taking a sip of her coffee. "Why the interest, Nate? She doesn't strike me as being your usual type."

"What's that supposed to mean?" He asked sharply.

"Nothing. I just meant that…well Brooke's often mentioned the women you tend to date and from what she's said they're pretty different to someone like Haley."

"Well maybe I'm sick and tired of those vapid airheads," he said with a touch of bitterness in his voice. It annoyed him that his lifestyle seemed to the topic of conversation between his family and friends when he wasn't around. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out his wallet and removed some money from it.

He felt like slamming it down on the counter but refrained from doing so, merely just placing it beside his plate. "I've gotta go. And I don't think I'm going to be able to make dinner tonight after all. I've just remembered I've already got plans."

Seeing him storm away, Deb called out to him. "Nathan!"

He was just about to open the door but he paused. Fixing a smile on his face, he forced himself to turn around and face her. "I'll call you later." With that said, he opened the door and left.

Deb released a heavy sigh as she picked up his plate and coffee cup and carried them out to the kitchen. Haley was seated at the table there and was eating an apple while flicking through a magazine.

"So, what did you think of Nate?" she couldn't help asking the younger girl, curious to know what she thought of her only son.

"Hmm, he seems nice," she said with a shrug. "Easy on the eyes too," she mumbled quietly as an afterthought.

The older woman laughed. "Yep, and doesn't he just know it. He seemed to take a shine to you I couldn't help noticing."

Haley blushed at having the last part of her sentence overheard and looking up from her magazine, Haley nervously met Deb's eyes but she made sure to keep her features schooled. "I seriously doubt that. I mean, since I've been working here I've heard all the gossip about him from you, Karen and Brooke and based on that information, I am so not his type. But more importantly, he's not mine either."

"Oh, and why's that?"

Haley could sense that the conversation was veering into dangerous territory. While she wanted to give the impression that Nathan wasn't her type, she certainly didn't want to piss his mother off by insinuating there was anything wrong with her son.

"Uh, he just…he's not like the other guys I've dated. Not that there have been many. I guess those guys were a little on the geeky side compared to someone like Nathan who, from what I gather from people around here, pretty much ruled the school." After a moment, she added, "I hope I haven't offended you."

Deb shook her head. "No, don't worry, you haven't. It's just that things were going well out there and then I had to say the wrong thing and… Never mind." She smiled at the young woman before walking back out into the café area.

After she had gone, Haley couldn't help wondering about what had happened between Deb and Nathan in such a short space of time. While she knew bits and pieces concerning the relationship he had had with his father, she realised that she didn't know much about the one he had with his mother. Getting up from the table, she threw her apple core in the trash and after washing her hands, headed back to work. As she did so, she decided that she'd try and find out a little bit more from Nathan when she saw him after her shift.

* * *

"So, you think she bought it?" Nathan asked Haley as they walked on the beach not far from his house. They had just been to the club where she had handed in her resignation and afterwards he had suggested they come back here and take a walk.

"I think so but I can't be sure. She seemed a little off this afternoon and I'm not sure what to make of it."

"I probably had something to do with that," he admitted. "I was supposed to be having dinner with her and she said something that kinda got to me so I cancelled."

"Oh. Do you, uh, want to talk about it?"

He turned his face to look at her and he smiled. "I'd probably bore you to tears. You've already had to hear me rant about my father so…"

"I don't mind," she interrupted. Placing a hand on his arm, she returned his smile. "It'll probably help if we know as much about each other as possible, the good stuff and the bad. You don't have to tell me anything you're not comfortable with but some background would be helpful."

Nodding at her, he began to talk as they continued to walk down the beach. "Things weren't so bad when I was little. I can actually remember a time when the three of us were really happy but then something just seemed to change all that and I'm still not sure what it was. My Mom got a promotion at work which meant she spent weeks at a time travelling and so that left just me and my Dad to fend for ourselves."

"How did that go?"

"It was pretty good at first. He used to joke and say it was just us guys together, that we could do what we liked without being nagged at by her. I was already playing basketball for my middle school at that time and we used to play together after dinner and it was fun. But then one day he just seemed so angry when I didn't make a shot and he threw the ball at me and starting yelling."

Without thinking about what she was doing, Haley laced her fingers with his and held his hand. "Did he apologise for what he did?"

"No," he said, shaking his head. "After that, things just seemed to go from bad to worse. It wasn't until I was in my junior year of high school that I found out my Mom had been having an affair and that that was the night he'd found out about it. Apparently, she'd told him she was leaving him."

Haley's fingers tightened around his. "I'm sorry. I'm a little confused though, I thought they didn't split up until you were in college?"

"They didn't. The guy she had been having the affair with didn't like kids and basically told her to choose between me and him. I remember her coming home a few days later and my Dad treating her like crap and her just taking it. I never knew why but when I did find out, well I guess that was one of the things that put me off ever getting married. I couldn't imagine ever hating someone enough to treat them so cruelly and a part of me has always been scared that I've inherited that from Dan."

Tugging on his hand, she got him to stop walking and stepping in front of him, she looked up into his face. "Nathan, I know we don't know each other all that well yet but I can see that that's not something you're ever going to have to worry about."

"You don't know th--"

"You're right, I don't…not for sure but I like to think I'm a pretty good judge of character and I can see you're a good guy. If you weren't, I wouldn't be helping you."

Nathan gave her a crooked smile and squeezed her hand. "You're the only person I've ever told about this stuff, you know. I mean, Luke and his parents are the only other people who really know what my childhood was like but that was more from just witnessing it than me talking about it."

Keeping her hand in his, Haley pulled on his hand gently to get him walking again and they resumed walking along the shore. "I'm glad you feel you can talk to me and I'm happy to listen whenever you want to get something off your chest."

"What are you my shrink now?" he teased and she playfully shoved her elbow into his side.

"Whatever you need," she replied with a smile gracing her features.

"So, I was thinking that…"

"Oh, so that's why I could suddenly see steam pouring out of your ears."

"Hey!" he exclaimed in mock outrage. "As I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted, I was thinking that maybe we should have our first date soon. It needs to be somewhere public so people see us together. What do you think?"

"Uh…yeah. I guess we need to get the ball rolling so to speak. Do you have anything in mind?"

"Not really, I was going to ask if there was anything you particularly felt like doing. I mean, we could go to a club or…"

"Could we maybe just go to dinner and a movie? I'm not really one for clubbing…I guess you could say I'm pretty boring."

It was Nathan's turn to squeeze her hand in reassurance. "I don't think you're boring at all. To be honest, I did the whole clubbing thing in college and it gets old after a while so I'm not going to argue with you if you don't want to do that. Dinner and a movie sounds good and it could work out really well."

"How do you mean?" she asked looking up at him.

"Well, if we go to the local theater instead of the main multiplex the woman on the ticket desk is the biggest gossip in town and she'll have broadcast the fact we're on a date in a matter of minutes."

"I'm guessing you mean Dolores? I went to the movies one afternoon with Brooke and she must have asked me a thousand questions in the time it took for us to buy our tickets."

"Yep, that's her." He chuckled. "Nothing happens in Tree Hill without her knowing about it."

"So when do you want us to have our date?"

"How about tomorrow night? I could pick you up at, say, six-thirty and we could go have dinner before watching the movie."

"Okay. My shift finishes at four again tomorrow so I'll have time to go home and get changed. I could meet you at…"

"Nope, I'm picking you up. I already know where you live now so what's your apartment number?"

Haley shook her head. "No, that's okay. I'll just meet you outside the building at six-thirty."

"Haley…"

"Nathan, it's fine. What's the point of you walking up seven flights of stairs only to have to walk back down them a few minutes later?"

"There's no elevator?"

She laughed. "Oh, there's an elevator but it's forever getting stuck and the phone doesn't always work in there so I prefer taking the stairs. Besides, it's good exercise."

"Not that you need it," he muttered under his breath and by the blush that crept onto her face he knew that she'd heard him.

Taking a deep breath, she asked, "I was just wondering, are there, uh, going to be any PDA's tomorrow night because that's not really who I am…I mean, I don't…um…"

Nathan stopped walking and placing his hands on her shoulders, he waited for her to look into his face which she did a moment later. "I'm not going to make you do anything you feel uncomfortable with, Haley. I think us just holding hands will get the gossip going but I was thinking a brief kiss could add to it…give the news more power if that makes sense."

Haley smiled shyly. "Yeah, it does. I'm sorry for being such a…"

"Hey, you don't have to apologise for anything. I can't tell you enough how much I appreciate you doing this for me."

"I know you do and you're welcome but just so you know, you don't have to keep thanking me."

"Okay." Smiling at her, he leaned forward and, without thinking, he softly kissed her lips before drawing away again. He saw the startled look on her face and he mentally kicked himself. "I-I'm sorry…I shouldn't ha--"

"No, no it's fine," she quickly reassured him. While the kiss did surprise her, she couldn't help being relieved that they'd finally crossed that first hurdle. The anticipation had been twisting her stomach into knots and the fact that it had been a sudden, impulsive kiss actually helped. So did the fact that it felt really good.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. You did take me a bit by surprise but in a way I think it really helped. I don't know about you but, um, I was kinda nervous about us actually kissing. I mean, a lot's riding on us being convincing and I was worried I'd somehow let you down," she admitted.

Bringing a hand up to her face, Nathan rubbed his thumb back and forth over her cheekbone. "You won't. I know what you mean about being nervous…I was too." He laughed at the incredulous look on her face. "I can see my reputation has definitely preceded me. Believe it or not, but I do still get nervous about stuff."

"I, uh, didn't mean to offend you."

"You haven't, it takes a lot to offend me. A lot of the gossip about me isn't true though."

"Oh don't say that, you'll leave me feeling disappointed," she teased.

"Very funny." Taking her hand back in his, they started walking again. "So, you feel like having dinner with me tonight?"

"Oh, I don't know. I should really go home and do some laundry and other stuff."

"Can't you do that another night? C'mon, we can hang out here and I'll even cook for you."

"You can cook?"

"Uh huh, I'm pretty good even if I do say so myself."

"Well then Mr Scott, I'll let you dazzle me with your culinary skills."

Giving her a grin, his cerulean eyes dazzled with mischief and quickly releasing her hand, he began jogging backwards away from her. Once he was a good distance from her, he called out, "Last one to the house has to wash the dishes," before turning and sprinting away from her.

Haley stood there open-mouthed for a split-second before chasing after him and shouting out, "You're gonna pay for that Nathan Scott!"


	8. Chapter Eight

**Author's Notes:** Thanks so much for all the lovely comments. I'm really glad you're all still enjoying this.

* * *

**Chapter Eight**

While showering before getting ready for her and Nathan's first date, Haley's mind wandered back to the previous evening and, in particular, to that kiss. Even though it had been brief, it had still felt good…really good, and she had found herself staring at his lips on more than one occasion, zoning out on what he had been talking about. Thankfully he had seemed to believe her excuse about being tired after he had teased her and asked if she was actually listening to what he was saying.

She knew the next few weeks especially were going to be difficult what with convincing his family and friends that their marriage was genuine but she was nothing if not determined. And while she enjoyed living and working in Tree Hill, a part of her wasn't sorry about leaving to go with Nathan to Chicago. At least there no one knew her so she could hopefully be a bit more relaxed than she would around Deb. She had sensed the other woman's coolness towards her after Nathan had made it clear he was 'interested' in her so she had a feeling that Deb wouldn't be congratulating them when she heard the news of them dating let alone getting married.

Moving her head under the showerhead to rinse off her conditioner, she suddenly screamed when the water turned cold.

"Dammit!" she cursed knowing she had no choice but to suck it up and finish rinsing. At least she had already washed herself, she thought as she held her breath while her fingers quickly moved through her hair. This was the second time in less than a week that the water had run cold and the fifth during the past month. No amount of complaining to her landlord seemed to make a blind bit of difference so after the first few times she had stopped mentioning it. What was the point?

Unable to bear the freezing cold water any longer, Haley turned off the tap and shivered as she squeezed the excess water out of her hair. Stepping out of the shower, she quickly grabbed her towel off the heating rail, not surprised in the slightest to find it wasn't warm at all, and wrapped it around herself before reaching for a smaller one and covering her hair with it in a turban style. She couldn't stop shivering as she made her way to her bedroom and she made quick work of getting herself dried. After spending a few minutes moisturising with her vanilla scented body lotion, she started getting dressed.

When she had arrived home from Nathan's the previous night, she had chosen the clothes she wanted to wear but now the thought of wearing a light summer dress made her skin break out in goosebumps so opening her closet door, she stared at her clothes for a few moments before finally selecting a pair of black fitted pants and a dark pink V-necked sweater. The sweater dipped low enough to give a glimpse of her cleavage and for a second she debated whether to slip a camisole underneath it but decided against it. After all, she was on a date, she thought to herself with a smile.

Using the mirror on the back of her closet door, she applied her make-up and a light misting of her favourite perfume before releasing her hair from the towel and running a comb through it. Carrying her towels into the bathroom, she hung them up to dry before going back into the bedroom and over to her hairdryer. Plugging it in, she turned it on and began blow drying her hair only for it to suddenly die on her.

"You have got to be kidding me!" she said aloud as she stared at it and willed it to work. Making sure it was definitely plugged in properly, she flipped the switch on the device a few times but nothing happened. "I can't believe this. Why tonight of all nights?"

Staring at it a moment longer, Haley then unplugged it because knowing her luck it would suddenly catch fire or something, most probably while she was out and she'd return to find the whole apartment building had gone up in flames.

Opening one of the drawers of her dresser, she pulled out a tortoiseshell claw clip and twisted her wet hair up and secured it with the clip, mumbling a silent prayer that it would hold up for the evening.

After slipping her feet into a pair of black strappy heels, she went into the compact living area of her apartment and put on her black leather jacket which she had placed on the sofa earlier. Picking up her purse, she made sure she had everything she needed and just as she was about to close it, she sneezed a couple of times.

"Great! Just what I need," she muttered to herself before walking back into her bedroom and removing some tissues from the box on her dresser and placing them into her purse. Giving herself a final check in her mirror, she smiled sadly. "Could be better but it'll have to do."

* * *

Nathan was sitting in his car, his fingers idly tapping on the steering wheel as he waited for Haley. He was a little early and it was probably for the best that he didn't know her apartment number because otherwise he'd no doubt be knocking on her door. As he sat there, he wondered whether she was one of those women that took forever to get ready each morning. Somehow he doubted it.

Leaning his head back against the headrest, he closed his eyes and wasn't surprised when an image of Haley appeared before him. He smirked at the fact that the vision of her he was seeing was actually fully dressed in her usual attire of jeans and a T-shirt. It was funny that despite having just met her a few days ago, she seemed to constantly be in his thoughts.

Last night when they had walked on the beach together it had felt great confiding in her about his childhood. He hadn't been lying when he said she was the only one he'd ever talked to about that stuff. For some unknown reason he felt completely at ease in her presence, something that wasn't usually the case with him when it came to strangers or even certain members of his own family come to that.

Arriving back at the beach house, they had cooked dinner together and he had been surprised at how natural it felt doing something as simple as that with her. In that moment he knew without a doubt that he had made the right decision in asking her to marry him and help him with his current situation.

The image he was seeing in his head suddenly altered and her clothing changed so she was now standing before him in a beautiful white wedding gown. In the past seeing something like that would have had him panicking but that wasn't the case this time. His lips curled into a smile but it faded slightly when he remembered that they wouldn't be having a proper wedding, that most likely they'd be getting married at City Hall, so the chances of seeing her in a wedding dress were very slim. As soon as that thought entered his head, an idea came to him and the smile returned to his face.

A knock on his side window brought Nathan out of his reverie and turning his head slightly, he saw the object of his thoughts peering in through the glass at him. He carefully opened his door and stepped out of the car so he was standing in front of her. Trying to be as subtle as possible, he let his eyes wander up and down and the smile he was still wearing grew as he took in her appearance.

"Is this, uh, okay?" Haley asked, feeling a little self-conscious under his gaze. As she had been walking down the stairs in her building, there had been a couple of moments when she had considered going back up and changing into the dress she had previously picked out and now she wished that she had done that.

"You look great," he told her.

"Are you sure because I can go up and change an--"

"I'm positive." And he meant that. The black pants showed off her curves beautifully and the sweater she had on was doing the same with her upper body. She definitely put some of the women in his past to shame.

"Okay," she finally relented. "So, uh, where to first? Dinner or the movie?"

"I say we hit the movie theater first, at least then we'll have something to talk about during dinner," he teased.

"That's fine with me. So, what are we going to see?"

Walking around to the passenger side of his car, he opened the door for her. Haley smiled gratefully at him as she got in. Watching him go back round to his side, she couldn't help admiring the way he was dressed. The blue shirt he had on seemed to match the colour of his eyes and the black pants just fit him…so well. He's definitely a looker, she thought to herself with a smile. Just as Nathan was getting into the car, she sneezed followed by another one and then another.

"Hey, are you okay?" he asked before starting the ignition.

She nodded as she pulled a tissue out of her purse and blew her nose. "Uh huh. I think that cold shower earlier on has given me the chills."

"Cold shower? Wow, I didn't know I had that effect on you."

Haley's cheeks turned crimson at hearing his comment. "Must have forgotten to mention that," she said in an attempt to keep things playful.

"Seriously though, why did you have to have a cold shower?"

"It wasn't by choice, believe me. While I was in the middle of washing my hair the water turned cold and I had no choice but to finish rinsing anyway."

"Haley, I…"

"It's okay, it's not like I'm not used to it."

"It's not okay." Looking at her he suddenly noticed her hair was wet and he frowned when he heard her sniffle. "And why's your hair wet?"

"Can you believe my hairdryer decided to die on me?" she said with a chuckle. "I'm starting to think this date is bad for my health."

"I'm sorry…maybe we should ju--"

"You have nothing to apologise for, Nathan. If anything it's my damn landlord who should be apologising."

"Does it keep happening then? I mean, your shower running cold while you're in it?"

She suddenly felt embarrassed about him knowing how things were for her so she decided to play it down. "Now and then. It's not that big a deal and…"

"Yes it is. You pay the guy rent so you and the other tenants are entitled to have hot running water." He could see her shivering and he silently cursed himself for not doing it as soon as he'd got back into the car. Turning the key in the ignition, he quickly switched the heater on and felt the warm air start to come through the vents. "I should have done that before," he told her with a sheepish smile.

"That's okay but thank you. I was actually planning on wearing a dress tonight but after that bracing shower I needed to feel warm hence me wearing pants and a sweater."

"No problem. It's only dinner and a movie so no need for us to get dressed up. Speaking of, do you still want to go to the movie? We could skip it and just go to dinner if you'd prefer."

"It's up to you."

"Nope, it's your decision."

"Okay, well I say we still go to the movie. After all, we want to give Dolores a show, right?"

"Right. Man, I can't wait to see her face. I wish we could find somewhere to hide and watch her start calling all her cronies as she spreads the news. Who knows, maybe we'll come outside to find an audience gathered waiting for us," he teased.

Haley laughed. "You never know. So, what movie are we seeing?"

"I'll let you choose…but just to warn you, I'll be raising objections if it's a chick flick."

"Duly noted, Mr Scott. I've got a suggestion but you're free to nix the idea if you don't like it."

Nathan nodded. "Okay, let me have it."

"How about we go to see Shrek 2? I've seen the first movie but hadn't gotten around to seeing the sequel and I really want to. I know it's more of a kids film but…"

"I loved the first one," he told her and he grinned at the surprised look on her face. "Didn't think it'd be my kind of movie, huh?"

"Oh…uh…" she stuttered as she tried hard not to offend him.

"It's okay, I'm sure most people wouldn't think I'd watched it either. I actually only got to see it because a business associate of mine invited me to his house one day to discuss a client and his kids had the DVD playing. Here we were, two grown men and we were totally taken in by an animated movie. We ended up sitting down with them and watching the rest of it and then I ended up buying it myself."

"So you really don't mind seeing the sequel?"

"Not at all," he told her, happy to see she'd stopped shivering. "I've been wanting to see it for a while but hadn't got around to renting or buying the DVD yet. I never thought I'd say this but I'm glad the Tree Hill movie theater is always several months behind the multiplex."

"Me too. We'd, uh, better get going. I think the evening showing starts in about half an hour and I don't want to miss the previews."

Giving her another smile, he put the car into gear and then released the handbrake before safely pulling away from the curb. As he drove them to their destination, Haley sneezed a few more times and he couldn't help silently cursing her landlord. The only positive thing was that at least she'd be moving out of her apartment in a few weeks time and once she was living with him, she could have all the hot water she liked.

"Sorry about that," Haley said after she had blown her nose again. If this kept up, her nose was sure to be glowing bright red by the end of the evening.

"You've got nothing to be sorry for," he told her. "Do you want me to have a word with your landlord and see if I can get him to sort out the water problem?"

She quickly shook her head. "No, that's okay. Thanks for the offer but I can deal with it. I'll see if I can get hold of him tomorrow or something," she said knowing that she wouldn't. He'd just fob her off as usual with empty promises so what was the point in wasting her breath.

"Fine but let me know if you change your mind."

"I will. I was just thinking, it might not be a good idea for us to kiss…you know, when we're in view of Dolores. It's just that if I'm getting a cold I don't want to pass my germs on to you."

Nathan smiled at her concern. Just a few simple words from her gave him a warm feeling inside and he couldn't remember the last time he'd felt that. "I think I'll be okay but thanks for caring." Turning into the parking lot behind the theater, he pulled into a space before shutting off the engine. "So you ready to go out there and do this? No turning back once ol' Dolly has seen us together."

"Well I guess you'd better get me out there before I change my mind then," she teased. "I think out of all of that's going to follow once we do this, I'm most worried about your mom's reaction when she finds out that we've gotten married. Maybe I'm being paranoid but when we had our supposed first meeting in front of her the other day, I got the feeling that she doesn't like the idea of you being interested in me."

Releasing an audible sigh, he shook his head. "It's not you, believe me. She'd have a problem with whoever I was involved with. Like I told you last night, we've never had a close relationship and I know she feels guilty about that and I think she sees any woman I date as someone taking me away from her. She doesn't seem to get the fact that I can't be taken away from her because she's never really had me, not for a long time anyway."

Haley picked up on the hint of sadness in his voice and her heart went out to him. She could easily picture the lonely little boy he had been growing up. Without thinking about what she was doing, she placed her hand on top of his which was resting on his thigh and she gave it a little squeeze. 'I'm sorry' was on the tip of her tongue but she didn't vocalise it, knowing that it wasn't what he wanted to hear.

Turning his head to the side so he could look at her, he looked into her eyes and held her gaze for a moment before they both looked away. Clearing his throat, he said, "C'mon, let's go. I'll even buy you some popcorn."

"And some M&M's."

"I've got a feeling you're going to be an expensive date," he said giving her a wink before opening his door and stepping out of the car.

Haley followed suit and after he had locked the car, they began the short walk to the theater. Their hands briefly brushed against each other's and she felt a tingle of both fear and excitement shoot up her arm at the contact. Knowing that this was the start of things to come, she took a deep breath and laced her fingers with his.

Before they rounded the corner leading them to where they were going, Nathan stopped for a moment and looked down at her. "Are you sure you want to do this, Haley? Because once we do this, once we're seen like this together, there's no going back."

Smiling up at him, she nodded. "I'm sure. I want to help you and besides, it's just for appearances sake, right?"

He looked at her with a confused expression on his face. "What do you mean?"

"Uh, well, I figured three years is a long time for you to…um…go without…you know…" As the words tumbled out of her mouth, she could feel her face burning with the embarrassment she felt.

His expression was still one of confusion until a light-bulb went off over his head. "You mean sex?"

Her blush intensified but she found herself nodding as she stared at the ground.

As he looked at her, Nathan realised that in the few days that he had met and gotten to know Haley, he hadn't thought of another woman at all and his stomach hurt at the thought of being with someone else while married to her. He remembered how much it had hurt when he realised his mother had been unfaithful to his father and had chosen another man over them both, albeit for a short period of time. And even though his marriage to Haley would only be one of convenience, he knew he didn't have it in him to go behind her back and cheat on her.

"Uh…Nathan? Are you okay?"

"I'm not going to cheat on you, Haley." He told her solemnly and he saw the look of surprise on her face.

"B-But it wouldn't be cheating…not really. I mean, the marriage is in name only."

Nodding at her, he replied, "Yeah, it is, but it would still be cheating and I couldn't do that to you…to whoever I was married to," he quickly amended.

"Well I'm not going to hold you to anything."

He sighed and leaned back against the brick wall behind him. "I know I'm asking a lot of you, but I'd appreciate it if you stayed faithful too. After what my Mom did to my Dad I…"

Her fingers tightened around his. "I understand, and you don't need to worry. I couldn't do that to anyone either."

Lowering his head, he pressed a soft kiss to her forehead before quietly sighing in relief. "Thank you."

She smiled back at him before stepping back from him and tugging on his hand. "C'mon big spender, let's get going before you make me miss the start of the previews. You don't want to make me cranky…you wouldn't like me when I'm cranky."

Nathan laughed at Haley's mock pouty face and let her pull him forwards. For some inexplicable reason, his chest felt a lot lighter than it had a few minutes ago and as he continued looking at her, he had a feeling he knew the reason why.


	9. Chapter Nine

**Author's Notes:** Thanks so much for all the feedback you're posting for this story. It's much appreciated!

* * *

**Chapter Nine**

Haley shifted from foot to foot as they waited in line to buy their tickets. She could feel her palms sweating and she was glad that Nathan was no longer holding her hand. Instead, his arm was wrapped around her shoulders as she stood beside him. Glancing up at him, she still couldn't believe what he had said only a few minutes before about being faithful to her for the duration of their marriage. That had been the last thing she had been expecting to hear.

Brooke, Deb and Karen had all at one time or another commented on Nathan's reputation with the opposite sex and so hearing him tell her that he would basically be celibate for the next three years was more than surprising…it was downright shocking. But then again, maybe the three women weren't the best judges of character when it came to him, she thought to herself. She liked and got on well with all three of them but the Nathan she had met and gotten to know was pretty different from the one they had described to her over the past few months. Still, they had known him his entire life so surely they knew him best, right?

"Are you okay?" Nathan's voice broke into her thoughts and looking up at him again, she gave him a warm smile.

"Yeah…just thinking."

He returned her smile and said, "And I'll bet I know what you were thinking about?" The rosy blush that tinted her cheeks gave him his answer and he bit his lip to stop himself smirking.

"We're next up after these two," he said lowering his voice as the line shuffled forward slightly.

She nodded before taking a long, slow breath to prepare herself for what was about to happen.

"Well, if it isn't our very own Nathan Scott!" A loud voice boomed loudly through the ticket office window.

Haley bit her lip as a giggle bubbled up in her throat and wrapping her own arm around him, she gave him a reassuring squeeze.

"Hi Dolores, long time no see," Nathan said hoping his voice was coming over as cheerful. If this wasn't essential to his plan, he and Haley would be enjoying the first part of their date somewhere far away from the middle-aged gossip in front of him.

"And what do we have here?" Dolores asked as she took in the sight of Nathan Scott with his arm wrapped around a familiar looking petite girl. A much younger girl if she wasn't mistaken.

Blushing under the older woman's scrutiny, Haley forced herself to smile.

"I think you've met Haley already and…"

"That's it, you're the waitress over at Karen's Café. I knew I recognised you from somewhere. So what brings you two here together?" Her pencilled in eyebrow rose in time to her question as she impatiently waited for the news so she could start spreading it around. She always loved an exclusive.

Smiling down at the woman in his arms, he looked back at the other woman who he could see was practically bouncing on her seat. "We're on a date. So, can I have two tickets for…"

"A date!? Well, aren't you the lucky one, Haley? Nathan here is one of our most sought after bachelors and you've just gone and snapped him right up…"

"Excuse me? I don--"

Nathan could sense Haley's anger and he too felt annoyed at the woman's thinly veiled insult but rather than saying something he'd probably only regret, he instead lowered his head to Haley's and softly kissed her lips. Drawing back from her slightly, he looked into her eyes for a long moment before turning back to look at Dolores.

"If anything, I'm the lucky one," he said. "Now, can I get two tickets to Shrek 2…please?" Pulling out his wallet, he handed over some money.

Dolores stared at the couple in front of her in complete shock before coming to her senses and printing off the tickets and handing them over.

Raising herself up on her tiptoes, Haley kissed Nathan's cheek before grabbing the tickets off the counter and saying, "C'mon, the movie's gonna start soon and we still need to get popcorn and candy. Bye Dolores, it was _so nice_ seeing you again."

He didn't stop himself laughing at the falseness of Haley's last statement and after saying his own goodbye to the woman who was still staring at them, he followed her over to where they sold the refreshments.

"Think she got the message?" Haley asked as she picked up a couple of items off the counter.

"Oh yeah," he answered before they both started laughing.

* * *

Exiting the screening room where their movie had been shown and walking back through the foyer leading to the main entrance, Nathan gently nudged Haley with his elbow when he saw Dolores chattering away on the telephone. Looking back at each other's faces, they had to quickly look away otherwise they would have cracked up.

"She's so subtle," he said as they walked back towards the car. Hearing her sneezing a couple of times, he saw her holding a tissue to her nose which he noticed had started going a little red. She had been sneezing on and off during the entire movie and he was sure that she'd be feeling pretty stuffy the next day.

"That was such a great movie and…" She trailed off when she felt another sneeze about to hit.

"That's it," Nathan suddenly said as he watched her body trembling. "I'm taking you home. There's no way you can sit in a draughty restaurant when you're obviously getting a cold."

"Nathan, I-I'm fine," she told him before sneezing again.

"Well you don't look or sound fine and chances are you're going to be a lot worse tomorrow."

"Thanks," she replied, a touch of sarcasm evident in her voice. "And besides, the restaurant will probably be a lot less draughty than my apartment."

"I'm not taking you back to your place, I'm taking you to mine."

"What?"

Reaching the car, Nathan turned and leaned against it as he looked into Haley's face. "I think you should come back with me and stay there. Hot showers are guaranteed," he said trying to keep the mood light.

Haley shook her head. "Look, I appreciate what you're doing but it's not necessary. And besides, I'll be moving in with you in a couple of weeks time so…"

"So why not now?"

"Because we're not married yet." Taking a deep breath, she continued, "I know it sounds old fashioned and maybe that has something to do with my family and the way I was brought up, but I always planned on being married before I lived with a guy. This is a small town and now that Dolores has broken the news about us to everyone, we're going to be under pretty intense scrutiny. Things are going to be bad enough when they find out we've gotten married in secret but I can just imagine the looks and stares I'll get if they find out I've moved in after us only having just met."

As she talked, he couldn't help smiling at her innocence. It made such a change from the women he usually associated with.

"What are you smiling at?"

"Huh? Oh…nothing. I understand what you're saying but you can't carry on having freezing cold showers."

"It won't be for much longer and it's not like it happens every day," she replied.

"That's not the point. Anyway, I've got a suggestion. How about you just use my place to have a shower or a bath? I mean, I've got more than one bathroom and you're welcome to make use of it. You can just come over before or after work…whatever suits you best. What do you think?"

Haley couldn't believe his generosity. "Are you serious?" When he nodded his head, she stepped in closer to him and wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him. "Thank you."

"So I'll take that as a yes then."

Looking up into his face, she giggled. "It's a definite yes. I really appreciate this Nathan, you have no idea."

"I think I do," he said quietly. "I've, uh, got another suggestion to make. How about we skip the restaurant and we go back to my place where I can make us dinner and you can have a nice hot bath which will hopefully help with that stuffy nose you've got?"

"That sounds really nice," she said smiling before adding, "but all my things are at my apartment."

"No problem, we can swing by there first and you can grab whatever you need."

"But that'll just take you out of your way."

"Haley, it's not a problem. Compared to the favour you're doing me, this is nothing."

Sensing he'd have an answer to any other 'problems' she came up with, she finally nodded. "Well, since you put it like that."

"Good." Lowering his head without thinking, he kissed her cheek before unlocking the car and opening her door for her. Once she'd gotten in, he closed her door and walked around to his side and did the same.

"So, what are we having for dinner?" she enquired as he drove them to her apartment.

"I was going to suggest pasta but we can have something else if you'd prefer."

"Well seeing as pasta is one of my favourite things to eat, I'm not going to turn that down. And if you're talking macaroni and cheese, then I'll be in heaven."

"You like mac and cheese?"

"Uh huh, food of the gods."

"Well it just so happens that I've pretty much learned Karen's recipe for it off by heart so you're in luck."

"Good to know I'll be getting something out of this marriage," she teased.

"Damn, if I'd known you were that easy I'd have offered you a lifetime supply of the stuff instead of money."

"Very funny," she teased.

A short while later they arrived at Haley's apartment and this time he insisted on coming up with her. While she grabbed a bag and filled it with the things she would need, Nathan couldn't help looking around. It wasn't a particularly bad place and he could see the little touches that she had made to make it look and feel a bit more homely, but he could see it wasn't what she was used to.

From the conversations they had had about her family, he knew they weren't particularly well off but that she and her siblings hadn't wanted for anything. Her parents had worked hard to provide a good home for their family and had instilled that work ethic in their children. He was glad that by her helping him with his current situation, that he could give her something back and make her life a bit more comfortable.

"You got everything?" he asked a moment later when she came out of her bedroom and stood in front of him with her bag.

"Uh huh. Are you sure about this, Nathan? I don't want to be a bother."

"It's fine, really. Here, give me your bag and I'll carry it for you," he said, reaching out his hand to take it from her.

"Are you sure you're the real Nathan Scott?" she couldn't help teasing.

He frowned at her question. "What do you mean?"

Haley could see from his expression that she had messed up in asking that, teasing or no teasing. "Uh…nothing, it's just…um…your mom and Brooke…uh…"

"Let me guess, they made you believe I was some kind of pig with no manners when it comes to the opposite sex. Is that it?"

Her face flushed and she deeply regretted saying anything. "I-I'm sor--"

"Don't Haley, you've got nothing to apologise for. And they wonder why I don't ever mention to them anything about my life in Chicago." Running a hand through his hair, he continued. "I know I've done some things in the past that haven't given me the best reputation in this town but I've grown up and I'm not that guy anymore. They obviously can't see that and see nothing wrong in filling people's heads with my past indiscretions…people I don't know and who don't know me for that matter."

Dropping the bag she still held onto the floor, she closed the distance between them and stood in front of him. Her hand came up to cup his cheek in her palm and she smiled at him. "I may not know you well Nathan, but in the short time I have known you you've been nothing but lovely to me and you're a completely different person from the one your mother and Brooke have told me about. I know I'm doing you a favour with this whole thing but you're doing so much for me too and I really appreciate it."

Looking into her rich chocolate brown eyes, Nathan could see the absolute sincerity in them as she spoke and he smiled at her words. His hand came up to cover hers which still touched his face and he gently squeezed it. "I've never met someone like you before," he said quietly and he watched her skin flush with colour at the compliment as her eyes flickered away from his for a moment before meeting them again.

"Well of course you haven't, I'm one of a kind," she teased.

He laughed and couldn't believe how quickly and easily she had managed to make him feel better. "That you are. So, you ready to go and have that bath?"

"Hell yeah. I can't tell you how long it's been since I've been able to soak in a bubble bath."

A sudden vision of her laying submerged in water surrounded by masses of bubbles with her skin glistening popped into his head and he felt his body heat up. He quickly coughed to clear his too dry throat. Stepping forward, he bent down and picked up her bag, grateful to have something to keep him occupied. No doubt while she had her hot bath he'd be having a cold shower.

"Okay, let's get going then. While you're having your bath I can get started on dinner."

As he made his way towards the front door, Haley simply stared after him. She couldn't believe how wrong his mother and those that had grown up around him could be about him. Okay, maybe she was being naïve considering they had seen him at his worst and she was only seeing him at his best, but she somehow doubted that. Were they so blinded by his past mistakes to realise that he had grown up and wasn't the same person he was back then? For some reason, she felt determined to at least try and get them to see past that.

"Hey, you coming?" Nathan asked a moment later when he realised she hadn't moved from her spot.

"Huh? Oh…yeah, I'm coming."

Extending his arm to her, he smiled when she placed her much smaller hand into his and allowed him to lead her out. She quickly made sure the place was locked before once again holding his hand and leaving the building together.

* * *

Haley breathed a long sigh of relief as she relaxed in the hot, herbal scented water. Nathan had told her he rarely took baths, preferring showers instead, but after a tough basketball game, he found the herbs in the bath salts helped relax his tired, aching muscles and so he gave them to her to use since she didn't have her own bubble bath. Trailing her fingers back and forth in the water, she made a mental note to pick up some of her favourite bubble bath during her lunch break tomorrow.

When Nathan had shown her around upstairs she had stared in awe at the bedrooms, all of them could easily have fit her apartment inside them. As soon as she had seen the main bathroom, she had fallen in love with it. The large bathtub could easily fit two people comfortably, something which had made her blush when the thought had entered her head. She had then forced herself to simply believe the reason to be that he needed something larger because of his tall frame.

The guest bedroom he had given her was gorgeous. It was decorated in cream, white and yellow and was large and airy. In a way the colour scheme had surprised her. Having caught a glimpse of his bedroom as they had passed it, she could see it was decorated in darker colours and she had assumed the rest of the bedrooms would have been the same. He had laughed and told her that his was the only room he had changed when he had moved in; the rest of the house was exactly the same as the day he had bought it. Since he didn't visit Tree Hill that often, he didn't see the point of going to the trouble and expense of redecorating it.

As she continued to soak and let the water soothe her tired body, she thought about how sweet his offer of her moving in had been. She couldn't help wishing she was a different person and that she could have just said yes but she wasn't lying when she had told him her reasons for declining. The fact that everyone in the town would know she was living with him after them only having met a few days ago would make her feel too self-conscious. She could easily imagine all the looks and whispers she'd be receiving as a result.

A knock on the door followed by Nathan's voice brought her out of her thoughts.

"Haley, just letting you know that dinner will be ready in about ten minutes."

"Oh okay, thanks. I'll be out soon."

"See you in a bit."

She heard his retreating footsteps and couldn't help smiling at how sweet he was with her. It didn't seem like the next three years would be _too_ hard to deal with.

Carefully standing up in the tub, she grabbed the shower head attachment and switched it on, quickly rinsing her body of the bubbles that clung to her skin. A few moments later, she had climbed out and wrapped a large fluffy towel around herself, securing it tightly under her arms. Emptying out the bath water, she rinsed it out and made sure she left it as it had been when she first arrived.

The bathroom was just down the hallway from the guest bedroom she was using and she quickly padded along the thick carpeted floor. Her room actually had an en suite but that only had a shower hence her using the main bathroom. As soon as she was inside, she closed the door and made quick work of getting dried and dressed into the jeans and purple sweater she had brought with her from the apartment. Releasing her hair from the scrunchie holding it up, she ran a brush through it and applied a little lip gloss to her lips before leaving and going downstairs.

The smells from the kitchen were making her mouth water and her tummy rumble and just as she entered the room, she saw him setting two plates of steaming macaroni and cheese onto the counter.

"Right on time," Nathan said when he saw her walk in. "What would you like to drink?"

"Water's fine," she replied.

"Are you sure? I've got wine if you'd prefer a glass of that."

Shaking her head, she smiled. "I'm not that big a drinker and wine seems to go straight to my head. I'll stick with water but if you want to have some wine, then that's fine."

"Nah, I'll have water too, especially since I'm giving you a ride home."

"You don't have to Nathan, I can get a cab back. You've already done enough for me tonight."

"No way. It's our first date, I can't very well make you get a cab home. Nope, I'm taking you."

Knowing that he wouldn't change his mind, she merely nodded before taking a seat at the counter and waiting for him to join her.

"You can start eating while I grab our drinks," he told her and was happy when she didn't argue with him. She picked up her fork and dug in to the pasta dish.

"Oh my god, this is amazing," she said after she had swallowed the first forkful. "If everything you make tastes this good I think you'll have me gaining weight during our three years together."

He smirked and without thinking replied, "Well, we'll just have to come up with a way of burning off those calories then." As soon as the words had left his lips, he realised what he had said and noticing the wide eyed look on Haley's face, he saw that she'd understood it too.

Not knowing what to say, he busied himself with going over to the fridge and getting a bottle of water out of it and then pouring some into their glasses. "Uh…here you go."

"Thanks," she muttered and then proceeded to take a long drink of the cool liquid hoping it would cool down the sudden heat she felt at hearing his words.

They ate in silence as both mentally tried to think of something to say to break the quiet.

"So…um…what do you have planned for tomorrow?" Haley finally asked.

"Oh, uh, I'm not sure yet. I need to call the office in Chicago and see how things are going there and then I thought I'd go and see Luke and Brooke."

"Say hi to them from me when you see them."

"I will. Hey, why don't you come with me?"

She shook her head as she finished chewing a mouthful of food. "No, that's okay. You should spend some time with them."

"And I will be but there's no reason why you can't be there too. Besides, we need to find out whether it was Dolores or one of her cohorts who broke the news to her about us dating and, to be honest, I'd rather you were with me when I face her."

"Hmm, you've got a point," she said smiling. "I can just imagine her face when she hears the news."

"Yeah, you don't want to miss out on hearing all about it."

"I'm working a later shift tomorrow and don't finish until six."

"That's fine. I can get some work done during the day and then we can head over there later. I'll give Luke a call and make sure it's okay with them first though." After taking a drink of his water, he asked, "So, um, what do you want to do after dinner? We could watch a movie or…"

"Yeah, a movie sounds good unless you want to do something else."

"No, that's fine. I was just going to say we could talk about organising the wedding. I mean, I know it's not real but that doesn't mean it can't be nice, you know. It'll probably be the only time I get married."

"Um, I guess we could do that. I know we need it to happen pretty soon, right?"

"Yeah. I need to see what the earliest date available is at City Hall. Chances are we'll have to wait a bit but maybe we'll be lucky and get a cancellation."

"Not so lucky for the couple who cancel," she said trying not to laugh but failing.

"I hadn't thought of that," he said chuckling. "Anyway, I figure we just go with the standard vows unless you'd prefer to write your own."

Haley quickly shook her head. "No, that's not…I mean…"

"It's okay, that's probably something you should save for when you get married for real."

She nodded her head slightly. "What should I wear? I mean, are we dressing up or…"

"I figure dressing up might be good. Nothing over the top or anything, just smart casual if that makes sense."

"Yeah, it does. I think I have something that might work," she said thinking of a yellow sundress she had brought from home which she had matching sandals for.

They finished eating, chatting and making plans for their forthcoming nuptials as they did so. When they were sitting in the lounge with their cups of coffee, she mentioned something that had popped into her head when he had been talking about Lucas and Brooke.

"I was thinking, we're going to need witnesses at the wedding ceremony and I was thinking, maybe we should ask Lucas and Brooke."

Nathan thought about it for a moment and agreed that it could work in their favour. The only problem was if they asked Brooke too soon she would no doubt reveal their wedding plans, most likely to his mother or Karen.

"Nathan?"

"Sorry, I was just thinking. It'd be nice for them to be there but I'm just worried the whole town will find out about it before we want them to."

"Yeah, that's what I thought to. But how about we don't tell them. Well Brooke anyway. Once we know the date and time, we could just invite them out to lunch and tell them we're going somewhere a little dressy and then spring it on them once we're at City Hall. What do you think?"

He grinned at her. "I think you're a genius, Haley. I can give Lucas a heads up although it might be cool to surprise him too. I mean, I know he's aware that we'll be getting married soon and he'll most likely guess, but it could still be fun playing with him."

"It'll be nice having people we know as our witnesses plus if we bring a camera, we can have some photos taken. We need this to be as authentic as possible for people to believe us."

"Yeah, we do. Okay, so I'll get started on things tomorrow. Hopefully we can get a date before Brooke pops the kid out."

"Nice description," she said teasingly. "What's the betting that the little one will make her appearance on our big day?"

"It'd better not," he teased back. "So Miss James, what movie would you like to watch?"

"I don't mind, whatever you want to watch is fine with me."

"How about Die Hard?" he suggested.

"Sure," she replied making herself more comfortable on the couch, resting her head on the arm of it.

Getting up from his seat, he walked over to his plasma TV and switched it on and then opened up his DVD/video cabinet, removing the movie in question and popping it into the machine. By the time he made his way back to his seat, he saw that Haley was fast asleep. For a long moment, he simply watched her and he couldn't help noticing how tiny she looked all curled up on his couch.

Leaving the room, he went to the cupboard under the stairs and removed a throw blanket and a cushion from it before making his way back to where she was. Shaking out the blanket, he spread it over her and as gently as he could, he carefully lifted her head up and slipped the soft cushion underneath it. The fact that she didn't move a muscle as he did it made him more determined to leave her where she was and let her sleep. He knew she'd probably be annoyed at him in the morning for not waking her and driving her home but he didn't care.

Walking over to the TV, he switched everything off and left one of the corner lamps on for her so that if she woke up in the night she wouldn't get scared at her unfamiliar surroundings. He watched her for a few seconds more before he bent forward and dropped a kiss onto the top of her head.

"Sweet dreams," he whispered before leaving the room and making his way upstairs.

* * *

Nathan was up bright and early the next morning and as he came downstairs, he wondered whether Haley would still be there. Quietly walking into the lounge, he saw she was still lying on his couch fast asleep, the blanket he had covered her with trailing half on the floor. He couldn't help smirking as he saw her lying there with her auburn hair in disarray from where she had obviously turned over during the night.

After switching off the lamp he had left on, he had almost made it into the kitchen when a loud banging on his front door had him cursing under his breath and he quickly headed towards it before it woke her up. Opening the door, he saw his mother standing on his doorstep with a frown etched upon her face and he had a good feeling he knew why she was there. Great, just what he needed at this time of the day and especially with Haley still being there.

"Hey Mom."

"I think you know why I'm here," she told him as she crossed the threshold and turned to face him. "I received an interesting phone call last night from one of the ladies I lunch with informing me that you were on a date last night with none other than Haley James."

Folding his arms, he looked his mother in the eyes and said, "That's right, I was on a date with her. So what?"

"So what? How can you say that?"

"What are you saying, Mom? Have you got something against her because…"

"Of course I haven't. She's a nice enough young girl, Nathan, but I…I don't think she's right for you, that's all."

"Oh really? And why's that? The other day at the café you seemed to think I wasn't right for her so which is it?"

Sensing her son's agitated tone, she sighed. "Look, let's go and sit down and we can talk about this."

"Let's not. Haley's still asleep and I don't want to wake her up."

"She stayed over? Well, it looks like I may have misjudged her after all. I thought she was different."

"What the hell's that supposed to mean? If you must know, we went out to see a movie which I'm guessing the whole town knows about thanks to that big mouth Dolores and then we came back here for something to eat. We were going to watch a movie but she fell asleep on the couch and I just covered her up with a blanket and let her sleep."

"You really expect me to believe that? You're forgetting I do know your reputation when it comes to women."

"Yeah, and you'll never let me or anyone else forget it. Fine, if you don't believe me come with me but be quiet." Walking into the lounge, he stopped just inside the door and let his mother see Haley still curled up on the couch…fully clothed. They stood there for a moment before he gestured for her to follow him and he led her to the front door again.

"If you must know she wasn't feeling all that well last night which is why we came back here instead of going out to the restaurant we were planning on having dinner at."

"Nathan, look--"

"No Mom, you look. I really like Haley and she likes me and we're going to keep seeing each other. I'm sorry if that upsets you because you think she's not good enough for me or I'm not good enough for her. She's a great girl and…"

"That's one of my concerns, honey. She's quite a bit younger than you and I just don't think you should get too involved with her."

"I know she is but she's pretty mature for her age. I'm not out to hurt her or use her or anything like that and it'd be nice if you could have some faith in me for once."

"I do, you know I do."

"No, actually I don't. I know you, Karen and Brooke often talk about me and from what I've heard, they're not exactly glowing reports. I know I've screwed up in the past but I've changed and if you can't see that, then I'm sorry. Haley sees me as the person I am now and that's important to me."

"I can understand that but are you sure you should be dating her…I mean, you're not going to be here for long what with your business in Chicago."

"Well I plan on being here for a few more weeks at least and we'll figure something out for when I go back."

Deb stood there open-mouthed as she listened to what her son was saying. Never in a million years would she have expected her son to have fallen for a simple small town girl. Granted, Haley was very pretty and sociable and it was easy to see what had him so attracted to her but still, she was very different to the types of girls—women he normally dated.

"Look, I'm sorry you had to hear about this on the gossip vine but believe it or not, we did want to tell you ourselves," he fibbed. He had to bite his lip to stop from smiling at the way his plan had worked exactly as he had intended it to. "I hope this isn't going to cause any problems with Haley working at the café."

She quickly shook her head. "Of course not. Just be careful, Nate, and take things slowly."

Childishly crossing his fingers behind his back, he nodded. "I will."

"Okay. How about one day next week you bring Haley over to the house and we all have dinner together?"

He inwardly groaned at the mere thought of it but he found himself nodding again. "Sure, that sounds good. I'll talk it over with Haley when she wakes up."

"Good. Well, I'd better be going and listen, if she's still not feeling well when she does wake up, tell her she can take the day off. There's no point her coming in if she's not up to it."

"I'll, uh, mention it to her but she might still come in. I'm pretty sure she won't want any special treatment just because she's dating one of the bosses' sons."

"It's not special treatment, I'm just looking out for my employee and the café's customers," she said smiling.

"Okay, thanks. I'll speak to you soon, Mom." Knowing it would help his cause, he leaned in and hugged the petite blonde and then kissed her cheek leaving the woman stunned. It was rare for him to make the first move like that with her and she took the opportunity to hug her little boy back.

She still wasn't convinced that him dating Haley was a good thing but if it made him open up with her more, then she'd give them a chance at the very least.

"Bye Nathan and say hi to Haley for me."

"Will do." He stood at the door and waited until she'd driven off before closing it. Rubbing a hand over his face, he breathed a sigh of relief at having that over and done with.

"So, I take it things went well?"

Turning around, he saw Haley standing in front of him and he smiled at her rumpled appearance. "It went okay. She's not happy about us dating but I think she might just give us a chance. Of course, that'll be shot to shit when she finds out we've gotten married behind her back."

The young woman sighed. "It's like two steps forward and then one back. She's going to hate me even more than she does now."

Going over to her, he wrapped an arm around her shoulder and brought her into his body. "Hey, she doesn't hate you."

"No, she just thinks I'm not good enough for you."

"How long have you been awake?" he queried when he heard her say that.

"Uh, I heard the banging on the door and when I realised it was your Mom I decided to pretend to still be asleep. I'm sorry for leaving you to deal with her on your own," she said shyly.

Nathan laughed. "I'm used to it don't worry. And I don't blame you in the slightest. I'd have probably done the same thing if it was the other way around," he confessed. "So, you heard about the dinner invitation?"

She nodded. "Yeah, and about me having the day off."

"Speaking of, how do you feel this morning?"

"Better, thanks. I think the steam from my bath helped my sinuses."

"So you're going in to work?"

"Uh huh. It was nice of her to say that but I'd prefer to go in, especially since it seems the whole town knows about us. It'll look like I've got something to hide if I don't show up."

"Yeah, I guess. I'll pick you up after work and we can head over to Luke and Brooke's."

"It's probably better that I meet you there. I want to go back to the apartment and get showered and changed."

"You can do that here, you know."

"I don't have any clean clothes here. I only brought what I'm wearing with me since I thought I'd be going home."

"Yeah, about that, I'm sorry I didn't wake you up but you looked so peaceful and I knew you weren't feeling well and…"

"It's okay," she interrupted. "Your couch is pretty comfy and, to be honest, I can't believe I slept for as long as I did."

Nathan breathed a quiet sigh of relief. "Okay, how about I drive you home now and you can grab a bag with some clean clothes and then come back here to get ready for work and then afterwards, I can bring you back and you--"

"Woah! Slow down there, Mister. I'll say yes to the ride to my place now so I can get ready for work but I'll take the bus back home afterwards and then if you want to, you can pick me up and take me to Brooke's."

Sensing that she was unlikely to change her mind, he relented. "Okay, but you can call me if you change your mind. What time should I pick you up then?"

"How about seven-fifteen?"

"Sure. I'll call Luke later and make sure it's cool for us to go over. I'm pretty sure it will be since Brooke is bound to have heard the news about our date by now. I'm surprised she didn't try calling last night."

"Ah, she probably did. I'm sure there's a message or two on my answering machine and no doubt she'll be asking why I didn't return her call."

"Well as long as she doesn't corner me we'll be fine," he said chuckling.

"We'd better make a move if I don't want to end up being late for work," she said a few moments later. "I'll just go and grab my bag from upstairs." She was halfway up them when he followed her.

"Listen, why don't you pack a bag with some of your things and leave them here in the guest room so that that way you'll have a change of clothes if you ever fall asleep on me again or just want to take a bath?"

Holding on to the banister, she turned and looked down at him. "Um…I-I don't…"

"It's not a problem, Haley. You're going to be hanging out here quite a bit and then moving in with me once we're married so it's no problem. You don't have to say yes now, but just think about it," he finally said.

"Okay, I'll think about it," she said nodding. "Thank you for the offer."

"You're welcome. Now hurry up if you don't want to upset your boss even more by being late."

"You're so funny," she deadpanned and she grinned when he smirked at her.

"Well that's because I'm a funny guy."

Poking her tongue out at him, she ran up the stairs to grab her stuff. For some reason, the enormity of what she was doing…was about to do suddenly hit her and she sat down on the edge of the bed and took a few deep breaths. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that the whole town most likely now knew about them and she was sure she'd be getting some looks and whispers today at work. She was relieved that Deb seemed willing to give them a chance but she couldn't help wondering whether she was being genuine or was just saying that for Nathan's benefit. Oh well, she'd find out soon enough, she thought to herself as she got up from the bed and made her way to meet Nathan downstairs.


	10. Chapter Ten

**Author's Notes:** Thanks again for the terrific feedback. I'm very grateful and I'm glad you're all still enjoying the story.

**naley4ever2333:** I'm sorry for any confusion. Basically, the last paragraph of the previous chapter refers to Haley just suddenly realising how big this whole thing is and isn't about her having second thoughts. So far, everything has just been between her and Nathan but now, knowing that others in the town know of their blossoming relationship, it's hit her that things might be more problematic than she'd first imagined. Hope that makes it a bit clearer.

* * *

**Chapter Ten**

Sitting at a picnic table situated on the roof of the café, Haley slowly ate her sandwich and made the most of her lunch break. While doing so, she looked around at the miniature golf course that surrounded her which, she had been told by Karen, Lucas and Nathan had created when they were kids and she couldn't help smiling as she took it in.

Finishing her sandwich, she sighed at the thought of having to return to work already. It was only about four hours into her shift but they felt like the longest four hours of her life. The café had been exceptionally busy today and she had a feeling she knew the reason for that. As she worked on filling the everyone's orders, she could feel their eyes on her following her every move as they quietly – and some of them not so quietly – questioned what Nathan Scott could possibly see in her. She couldn't believe how rude some of these people were being in that they weren't even attempting to lower their voices.

"Karen told me I'd find you up here."

Turning her head, Haley forced herself to smile at Deb Scott who was making her way over to where she was sitting. Terrific, just what she needed right now, she thought to herself. "Uh…hi. I'm just taking my lunch break."

"So I see."

"I was actually just on my way back down and--"

"I think you can spare me a few minutes, Haley."

The young woman nodded. "Sure. I take it this is about Nathan." She knew there was no point beating around the bush and so she might as well get this over with.

"Yes. I assume he told you about my visit to the beach house this morning?" Receiving a nod in reply, she continued. "Look, I like you Haley, I really do but I just don't want to see him get hurt."

"And you think that's what I'll end up doing?"

Taking a seat in the chair opposite, she replied, "Maybe not intentionally but yes, I do. He doesn't do relationships, he never has and that's probably got something to do with my marriage to his father. I think you're both setting yourselves up for a big fall if you continue with this…whatever it is you're doing."

"We're dating," she coolly told the other woman. "Have you ever considered the fact that maybe he hasn't had a relationship before because he just hasn't met the right person?"

Deb scoffed. "And I assume you're the right person for my son? I don't mean to be rude but if you want my honest opinion, you're a novelty to him. You're not like the other women he's dated and he probably finds it exciting. There's also the possibility that he knows it would make me unhappy to see him dating someone like you."

And there it was. Haley's cheeks burned with a mixture of anger and embarrassment. Oh, she knew the older woman was fine with having her as her employee…working as a waitress in hers and Karen's café but dating her son? No, that couldn't happen. All of her friends and acquaintances at the country club would surely laugh and whisper behind her back at the mere suggestion of that happening.

"Someone like me? And what would that be exactly, Mrs Scott?"

"I'm sure you're aware by now that my son is a successful businessman and that due to my ex-husband's recent death he stands to inherit a vast amount of money and property and--"

Haley pushed her chair back loudly and got up from her seat. "Let me stop you there before I end up saying something I'll regret. I am not interested in Nathan for his money or his property or any other superficial reason you can come up with. I like him for him. I like him for the person that is so far removed from everyone's past descriptions of him to me that it's not even funny."

"Haley…"

"No, please let me finish. I know I've only just met him but I like him and I'm pretty sure he likes me. I don't know whether what's happening between us is going to go anywhere," she lied before continuing, "but I'd like to find out."

Deb sighed loudly as she too got to her feet. "I don't even see why you're bothering seeing that he'll be returning to Chicago very soon."

"Well we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. You know something, I can't believe the fuss that everyone is making just because we've gone out on one date."

The blonde woman laughed dryly. "It's a small town where our family is very well known. I'm guessing you've been on the receiving end of some looks and comments in the café?"

She nodded. "Yeah, you could say that. Almost makes me wish that I'd taken you up on your offer to have the day off."

Cocking her head to the side, Deb asked, "Why didn't you?"

"Because I knew that would look even worse. Everyone would think I was hiding and there's no way I'm doing that. I've got absolutely no reason to hide," she said defiantly. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'd better back to work." Picking up her plate from the table, she quickly made her way towards the door.

"Haley?"

Sighing quietly, Haley turned to face the older woman and waited for her to speak.

"Just don't hurt him, that's all I'm asking. I know he acts all tough but deep inside I know he still hurts from how Dan and I treated each other during our marriage and how he was treated as a result."

"The last thing I want to do is hurt him, Mrs Scott."

"Thank you," Deb replied. Giving the young woman before her what she hoped was a reassuring smile, she said, "Now ignore those tattletales in the café who have nothing better to do with their time than gossip. They're just jealous that Nate is interested in you and not one of them."

Haley was frozen to the spot as the other woman's words sank in and she forced herself to return her smile. Talk about a downshift, she thought. One minute she was warning her against getting involved with her son and the next she was acting sort of supportive. "Uh…I-I will."

Watching the young woman leave, Deb stood there for a few moments thinking things over. She knew that if she wanted to be a part of Nathan's life, then she needed to be supportive of his relationship with Haley. Knowing her son the way she did, there was a good chance he would lose interest in her in a week or two. Also, the more she was against it, the more likely he would continue things just to spite her. No, she decided, the only way to deal with this was to be as supportive as she could and hopefully it would all fizzle out by the time Nathan returned to Chicago. As she left the roof, she felt better about the situation and the smile on her face was a genuine one.

* * *

"Hey, I'm sorry I was late," Haley called out to Nathan from her bedroom as she quickly got dressed. "I had to wait ages for the bus to arrive and--"

"Don't worry about it, it's fine. But I did offer to pick you up after your shift, remember?"

"Yeah yeah," she teased. "So Brooke and Lucas are okay about us going over there tonight?"

"Uh huh. Luke said he'll order take out and we can have dinner over there with them."

"Great, I'm starving."

"When aren't you?" he muttered jokingly under his breath.

"What was that?"

"Nothing." He stretched his legs out in front of him as he sat in the almost threadbare armchair and as he looked around the place, he was once again reminded of how much better he would feel once Haley was living with him and able to share his creature comforts.

"So, uh, is this okay? It's just casual, right?"

Standing up, Nathan looked her up and down and took in her outfit of a blue denim knee-length skirt and white embroidered cotton sleeveless top and he smiled. Her hair was swept up into a ponytail with a few loose tendrils framing her face and she had once again kept her make-up light.

"You look…beautiful," he finally said and he meant it. "And…uh…yeah, casual's right."

"Thank you," she replied shyly.

Giving her a nod, he held his hand out for her to take which she did a short moment later. "Come on, let's get going. I don't know about you, but I'm looking forward to seeing Brooke all flustered when she confronts us."

Haley laughed. "I know. To be honest, I was expecting her to come into the café or at least call me but nothing."

"Well she's not as light on her feet as she used to be," he teased as they walked towards the front door.

"Ooh, I dare you to tell her that when you see her."

He gave her a look of mock outrage. "Do you think I've got a death wish? Although, on second thoughts, if you're willing to make it worth my while I might just think about it." Realising what he'd just said, he mentally kicked himself. "Uh…sorry."

"You don't have to apologise, Nathan." Squeezing his hand in reassurance, she said, "Look, if we want people to believe this is real, then teasing and flirting with each other should be a natural thing. And just so you know, I'm no shrinking violet so you don't have to worry about me being offended. I can give as good as I get, don't worry."

"Okay," he said giving her hand a squeeze in return. Opening the door for her, he waited while she grabbed her purse and a jacket before she locked the door behind them. Once they were outside the building and walking towards his car, he casually slung an arm around her shoulders and he couldn't help smiling at how well she fit him and his smile widened when he felt her arm slipping around his waist. He was pretty sure that to any observers, they were just any other couple walking down the street which was exactly what he wanted. He just hoped that those that knew him best in the small town would believe it too.

"Hey guys, come on in," Lucas said as he opened the door wider, allowing Nathan and Haley to enter.

"Hi Lucas, thanks for having me over with Nathan," she said smiling up at the tall blonde.

"No problem, the more the merrier." Closing the door behind them, he added, "But just to warn you, Brooke's a little…um…"

"Pissed?" Nathan suggested with a smirk gracing his lips.

"That's putting it mildly. You know how much she hates to be the last to know anything."

"Don't I know it. You haven't told her the truth though, right?"

Lucas shook his head. "Your secret is safe with me. I hate lying to her about this but…"

"I'm sorry we've put you in this position," Haley quickly interrupted. She couldn't help but feel bad at Lucas having to lie to his own wife to cover up the truth about her and Nathan.

"There's no need to apologise, it's not your fault. But just do me a favour, don't ever let on that I knew the truth. You know, when this whole thing is over. I'm not sure she'd ever forgive me for keeping it from her."

Nathan nodded. "It'll stay between the three of us, don't worry."

"Thanks. Okay, let's get in there and rescue the food. I hope you like Thai food, Haley."

She smiled. "I love it."

"Great," he said leading them through into the dining room.

"Hey Brookie," Nathan greeted as he saw her removing cartons of food from a large bag.

"Don't 'Brookie' me. How the hell could you not tell me this, huh? I had to hear it from Lucinda who heard it from Melanie who had heard it first from Dolores. I'm related to you and yet I had no clue about you and Haley."

"Honey, you need to calm down. Getting stressed out isn't good for the baby," Lucas placated as he walked over to his wife and placed his hands on her shoulders.

"And don't you start patronising me. How could you not tell me?"

"I already told you, I didn't know they went on a date," he said with a sigh. That part was actually true. He hadn't known that his cousin and his…new girlfriend were going on a date last night.

"Uh Brooke, look I'm sorry we didn't mention it but it was kind of a last minute thing. Nathan asked me to the movies and I said yes and that was that. If I'd have spoken to you beforehand, I would definitely have mentioned it and especially if I'd have known you'd be this, um, upset."

Looking at Haley's face as she spoke, the brunette suddenly felt bad about her blowout. It was one thing to kick Nathan's ass but quite another to take things out on her new friend. "No, I-I'm sorry. You don't have to tell me every time you go out on a date or something. It's just…I hate being the last to know something, especially when it's coming from those gossip whores."

"Hey, how about we sit down and carry on this conversation while we're eating 'cos I'm starving," Nathan said, hoping to lighten the mood even more now that a truce had been called.

"Sure, where are my manners. Haley, you're sitting opposite me," Brooke said before continuing, "and Nathan, you're sitting beside her."

They all took their places and began passing the cartons of food around, helping themselves to the variety of dishes that Brooke had selected and tucking in to them while talking about this and that.

"Wow! These noodles are delicious. Which takeout place did you use?" Haley asked.

"Oh, it's actually a restaurant that Lucas and I often go to but they also have a takeout service which is great since lately I've had a real craving for Thai or Chinese food."

"Speaking of, how's my baby cousin doing?"

"He's fine," Brooke answered with a sly smile.

"He? You finally decided to find out the sex?"

"Nope. I could easily have said she instead. We want to be surprised," she said looking over at her husband.

"Yeah, we do. Not long to go now before we find out."

"Anyway, enough about us…"

"That's a first," Nathan muttered just loud enough for the others to hear him.

"Very funny. As I was going to say, how did you two end up going on a date together?"

Haley felt her palms sweating and she discreetly wiped them on her skirt before taking a long drink of her iced tea. "Um, Nathan bumped into me as I was leaving work one evening and asked me out and I said yes," she replied, using the story the two of them had concocted.

"Oh, is that it?"

"Why, what were you expecting her to say?" Nathan asked.

"I don't know but I just figured there'd be more to the story somehow. So, how come Deb didn't mention you two were going on a date when I saw her yesterday?"

"Probably because she didn't know," he told her. Turning to Haley, he asked, "I forgot to ask, was she okay with you earlier on at the café?"

"Uh huh, she was fine."

He didn't fail to notice how quickly she answered his question and he made a mental note to ask her about it when they were alone and when she'd be more likely to tell him the truth. The last thing he needed was his mother giving Haley a hard time.

"So, how's work been lately?" Lucas asked his cousin and while they talked about that, the two young women chatted about other things.

After dinner, they moved to sit in the living room while Brooke and Lucas went into the kitchen to make coffee.

"That wasn't too bad, was it?"

Haley smiled. "No, not bad at all once Brooke calmed down."

"I'm going to call City Hall on Monday and find out what dates they have available for us to get married," Nathan said in a low voice after making sure Brooke wasn't suddenly about to appear.

"Actually, I don't know if you'll be able to do that without us having the marriage license first."

"Crap, I'd forgotten all about getting a license. Thanks for reminding me. You don't happen to know the procedure, do you?"

Hearing the sound of footsteps, Haley shook her head. "We'd better not talk about this here just in case a certain person is listening."

"Yeah, you're right. So, you feel up to putting on a show for our hosts?"

"Uh, how do you mean?"

Instead of answering her verbally, Nathan took her small hand in his and intertwined their fingers and leaning in closer, he whispered into her ear. She couldn't help shivering at the feel of his hot breath on her cheek and turning her head slightly, she met his gaze briefly before looking down at their hands and blushing.

"Hey lovebirds, we'll have none of that," Brooke teased as she entered the room closely followed by Lucas who was carrying a tray.

"None of what?" The blonde asked as he set down the tray on the coffee table.

"These two were getting all smoochy."

"N-No, we weren't. Uh, Nathan was…"

"Whispering sweet nothings into your ear, huh?" Brooke interrupted, a grin etched on her face. As she watched them sitting on her couch, she didn't fail to notice how good they looked together. When her husband had first mentioned that Nathan had been introduced to Haley, she couldn't help but feel concerned. His reputation in the small town was almost legendary and she didn't want her friendship to be ruined as a result of him using her for some fun while he was in town and then tossing her aside when he left. But looking at them together in that very moment…she noticed something different about him and she realised that maybe this young woman was just what he needed.

"Hey, earth to Brooke? Are you okay in there?"

"Huh?" Nathan's voice broke into her thoughts and she quickly shook her head. "I'm sorry, what were you saying?"

He laughed. "I was just asking which coffee was mine."

"Whichever one you want seeing as none of them have milk or sugar in them."

Taking the offered coffee cup from Nathan, Haley smiled at him before adding some milk and stirring it. Turning to Brooke, she asked, "So, how's the nursery coming along? Did you manage to finish it yet?"

"Yep, we finished it this morning. You'll have to come upstairs and take a look before you go home."

"Definitely," the young woman replied.

Setting down her cup, Brooke pushed herself up off the couch. "Actually, let's go and do that now."

"Sure, lead the way," Haley said as she placed her own cup down on the table and then got up.

"You want to come and take a look too, Nathan?"

"Uh, okay."

"I may as well come too," Lucas said following them all up the stairs.

"Ha, you just want to make sure Brooke doesn't take all the credit," Nathan teased his cousin.

"You got that right."

Reaching a closed door that was opposite the master bedroom, Brooke turned to her guests. "Now, if you like it, then it was all my idea but if you don't, then the blame lands on Lucas' shoulders."

"Hey!"

"I'm only kidding, honey."

Nathan and Haley both laughed at the other couple's antics.

"C'mon, let us see it so we can give you our opinions," Nathan said.

Opening the door, Brooke entered the room and flicked the light switch, creating a soft glow in the room.

Haley walked in and stared open-mouthed at what she was seeing. On the walls was painted a woodland wonderland that featured all sorts of animals from birds and butterflies to rabbits and squirrels and everything in between. The colours the artist had used were amazingly vivid and it looked and felt so real.

"Oh my god! Brooke, this is absolutely beautiful!" Haley exclaimed as her eyes took everything in.

"You really like it?"

"I love it and your baby is going to love it too," she said reaching out and squeezing the brunette's hand.

"Nathan, what do you think?" Brooke asked turning to look at him.

"I agree with Haley, this is amazing. It's so realistic."

"I know," Lucas chipped in. "I wasn't too sure about it when Brooke first suggested it but I'm glad she pushed the idea."

Wandering around the room, Haley couldn't stop smiling. This was something she pictured for her own children one day. One thing you couldn't fault Brooke Scott on was her taste. All of the furniture she had chosen for the room was exquisite and no doubt cost a small fortune. She had no doubt in her mind that Baby Scott was going to be one pampered little kid.

Nathan couldn't take his eyes off of Haley as she walked around the room, staring in awe at the beautifully decorated nursery. Even though he hadn't known her for very long, he knew that this was most likely the sort of thing she would want for her own baby and he felt a sharp pang at the knowledge that that would be happening with someone else. Walking over to where she was, he stood behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. He felt her stiffen for a split-second before she relaxed in his embrace.

"Hey, you ready to go back downstairs?"

"Uh huh." Taking one of his hands in hers, she interlaced their fingers and they walked over to where Brooke and Lucas were standing just by the doorway.

"Thanks for showing us the room," Haley said smiling at the other couple.

"Are you kidding? We're going to be showing this room off for a good while," the brunette said with a chuckle. "Come on, let's go back downstairs although our coffees are probably cold by now."

"Actually, would you mind if we skipped coffee?" she asked. "It's just that today's been a pretty long day and I'm feeling a bit tired."

"And no doubt you two want some time alone, huh?"

Haley blushed at hearing her say that. "Uh…"

"Mind your own beeswax, Brookie," Nathan said, his trademark smirk firmly in place.

"Okay, okay."

The four of them walked downstairs and after they had grabbed their jackets and Haley had picked up her purse, they began to say their goodbyes.

"Thanks for having us over, guys. I had a lot of fun tonight and hopefully we can do it again sometime."

Leaning in, Brooke hugged Haley. "Of course we can, but it probably won't be until this little one has arrived."

"Speaking of, if you two ever want to have a night out or something, I'd be more than happy to babysit. I've been doing it with my nieces and nephews for a long while now so I'm an old hand."

"Ooh, you shouldn't have told her that, Haley," Lucas said laughing. "She'll hold you to that, in fact I will too."

"Well, I'll look forward to it."

"Okay guys, we're gonna make a move. We'll talk to you soon."

"G'night, you two. Don't do anything we wouldn't do," Brooke called out and laughed when she saw Haley blush again.

Nathan ignored her and merely gave them a wave goodnight before wrapping his arm around his girlfriend's shoulders as they walked to his car. Once out of earshot, he said, "Hey, I'm sorry about all of little comments. It's just her way, you know."

"Yeah, I know but the blushing probably came in handy tonight."

"How'dya mean?"

"Well, it makes it look like I've got something to blush about," she said with a wink which caused him to laugh out loud.

"And there's me thinking you were embarrassed as hell."

"Maybe I was a little but not as much as you probably think."

"Good to know. Hey, are they still watching us from the door?" His back was to the house so he didn't know and he didn't want to turn and make it obvious that he was looking.

Peering around him, she noticed that Brooke and Lucas were indeed watching them and waiting for them to drive away. "Uh huh. Why?"

"Let's make this look even more natural," he said before lowering his head to hers and kissing her mouth softly.

Haley's eyes fluttered shut as she anticipated his kiss and almost instinctively, her arm came up to wrap around his neck and hold him to her as he nibbled and then suckled on her lips.

Nathan could feel himself getting lost as he continued the kiss and he was almost on the verge of slipping his tongue into her mouth before he remembered exactly what he was doing. Reluctantly, he broke the kiss and he inwardly groaned when he watched her little pink tongue come out and lick her lips.

"They…They're not watching anymore," her voice broke the silence and she watched his lips curve up into a smile.

"No doubt she's on the phone telling someone about what she just saw," he said. "C'mon, I'll take you home."

"Or…"

"Or what?"

"Or we could go to your place and start looking into getting a marriage license."

"Uh, how do you mean? It's pretty late so I don't think anywhere we call will be open."

She shook her head. "The internet never closes," she said, giving him a grin. "We can at least look into it so that we can get the ball rolling next week."

"That's a good idea but I thought you were feeling tired."

"I am a little but we need to do this, Nathan, and the sooner we start the better, right? I'm working again tomorrow and it's a double-shift so I doubt I'll feel like doing anything afterwards."

"Okay then, let's go." Unlocking the car, he opened her door for her and waited for her to get in before closing it and going around to his side. Before getting in though, he couldn't help licking his lips and he was happy to realise he could still taste her on them. He knew whatever happened between them, it was going to be an interesting experience.


	11. Chapter Eleven

**Author's Notes:** Thanks again for all the wonderful comments you're leaving me for this story. It really means a lot and I'm so glad you're still enjoying it.

* * *

**Chapter Eleven**

_T__hree weeks later…_

Sitting in his office at the beach house attempting to get some work done, Nathan couldn't believe that in just a few days time he would be a married man. The funny thing was that he was actually looking forward to it and he had a feeling that was largely down to the fact he would be marrying Haley. He still felt it was unfair that he was dragging her into this mess but she continued to reassure him that she knew what she was doing and was happy to help him out.

In fact, as soon as they had arrived home from Brooke and Lucas' house that night a few weeks back, she had taken control and done a Google search on his computer and found several websites which set out the steps they would have to take to acquire a marriage license. Reading over her shoulder, he had been surprised at just how easy it was. Apparently all they needed to do was complete a form, take along some formal identification and stand before a Magistrate to have it certified. Once that was done, it would be valid for sixty days and they could choose where they wanted to be married and who they wanted to perform the ceremony.

They completed the online application form that night and printed it off, ready to take it to be certified on the Monday morning.

Instead of getting the license locally, Nathan had decided to drive them to Charlotte so that they could avoid bumping into anyone they both knew in his home town. The last thing they needed was to raise anyone's suspicions about what they were planning to do before they had a chance to do it.

Upon entering the room to stand before the Magistrate, he had asked her once again if she was sure and she had looked into his eyes and nodded; reassuring him once again that she was happy to help him with this.

The process hadn't taken all that long and after paying the required fifty dollars, they walked out with their marriage license. On their way back to the car they had discussed where they should get married and they both decided on the courthouse being the best option because, after all, it was just a marriage of convenience so there was no need to go to too much trouble.

Reclining back in his comfortable leather chair, Nathan frowned at that thought. She deserved the day to at least be a little special even if it was going to be a fake marriage for all intents and purposes. It was too late to change the venue but maybe there was something he could to make the event a bit nicer for her.

The frown turned into a sly smile as he got up from his chair and began making his way out of the house.

* * *

Seeing no car in the driveway when she arrived, Haley gently placed the carrier she was holding down on the floor before rooting around in her bag for her key ring which she found a moment later. Inserting the key into the lock and opening the door, she picked up the carrier again and walked into the house, closing the door behind her.

She still felt weird using the key Nathan had given her but he had insisted she have it and use it whenever she came over to his place. Going into the living room, she set the carrier down again together with the shoulder bag she was carrying, but this time she picked up the precious bundle that was contentedly sleeping inside it.

"C'mere sweetheart," she whispered as she cradled the baby in her arms and walked over to the couch to take a seat on it.

Gracie Karen Scott had been born almost two weeks ago and Haley had immediately fallen in love with the little girl. She had actually been out shopping with Brooke one morning when the expectant mom had suddenly gone into labour and, having gone through the same thing with one of her older sisters, she had taken control of the situation; something that her friend had been extremely grateful for that day.

At the hospital, she had stayed in the delivery room with Brooke until Lucas had arrived and then she had patiently waited with Nathan in the visitors area for the little baby to make her grand entrance into the world which she did several hours later. As soon as they had been allowed in to see the new addition to the family, Brooke had handed her daughter over to Haley to hold and her heart had melted. You could clearly see the couple's features reflected in their child from Brooke's dark hair and pouty mouth to Lucas' blue eyes.

Having seen how tired her friend looked when she had seen her a couple of days ago, Haley had immediately offered to baby-sit Gracie so that she could spend some time catching up on her sleep or going to the spa and having a relaxing day being pampered. Brooke, not wanting to leave her daughter for too long despite trusting the auburn haired young woman implicitly, had declined spending the day at the spa but had decided to at least spend an afternoon there which was why Haley was now sitting in Nathan's living room with the baby safely ensconced in her arms.

Rocking the baby gently, she hummed a soft tune as her thoughts drifted to what would be happening in a few days time. While she couldn't help feeling nervous and apprehensive knowing that for the next three years she would be married to Nathan, a part of her felt excited at the same time. He was one of the kindest, most generous people she had ever met and she hoped that when their marriage eventually came to an end, that they could remain on good terms because she knew she would miss him from her life.

Since that kiss outside Brooke and Lucas' house, they had kissed a couple more times when they were in the presence of others as a demonstration of their blossoming relationship which people in the small town definitely seemed to be taking notice of. She giggled at the memory of taking the initiative and kissing him in the café in front of his mother one afternoon when he had picked her up at the end of her shift. He obviously hadn't been expecting her to do it but he had soon gotten into it and kissed her back.

While Deb hadn't voiced her objections since that day on the café's roof, she knew for a fact the older woman wasn't happy about the way things were progressing between her only son and a mere waitress, and she couldn't help occasionally flaunting things a bit when she'd had enough of the older woman's stony looks.

Haley released a heavy sigh before her thoughts once again turned to Nathan and the frown that had crept onto her face dissolved into a smile. There was no doubt about it, he was an extremely handsome man and he definitely made the butterflies in her tummy flutter at times, especially when she'd catch him staring at her when he thought she wasn't looking. She would be lying if she said she didn't feel an attraction to him but he had made it clear from the start that this marriage would be a business deal between them. Having said that though, he had taken her by complete surprise when he had told her that he would be staying faithful to her for the duration of the marriage.

Hearing little whimpers coming from the baby, she smiled at her before leaning down and placing a soft kiss on her chubby little cheek. Whatever happened between her and Nathan, she had a feeling it was going to work out okay and she hoped that she was right.

"Hey there, sweetie. Did you have a nice nap?" Gently moving Gracie so she was holding her up in front of her, she said, "So, what do you feel like doing? We could watch some TV or listen to some music or we could ask your cousin Nathan to make those funny faces for you."

The baby gurgled in response to Haley's voice.

"Yeah, I vote for that last one too. We'll ask him when he gets back but in the meantime, I think it's time for some milk."

Slowly getting up from the couch, she walked over to where she had left the carrier and she placed the baby back down in it before carrying it and the shoulder bag Brooke had packed into the kitchen where she began to warm up one of the bottles of milk her the new mother had expressed.

It was while she was feeding Gracie that she heard the front door open and gently carrying the baby in her arms as she fed her, she walked towards it. She saw Nathan just coming through the door carrying a large, flat white and silver box and he froze when he saw her.

"Uh…what are you doing here?"

The smile on her face at seeing him slowly faded and she opened her mouth to say something but he cut her off.

"Damn! I'm sorry, Haley. I didn't mean to sound so rude. It's just…I wasn't expecting to see you here this afternoon."

"I wasn't planning on coming over today but Brooke took me up on my offer to baby-sit Gracie and I didn't want to take her to my place so I thought I'd bring her here and we could hang out. I probably should have called first."

Nathan shook his head. "No, of course you shouldn't have called first. This is going to be your home and I want you to feel comfortable here whether I'm here or not."

Giving him a shy smile and a nod, she averted her eyes to check on the baby and saw that she had almost finished her bottle. "Wow, you must have been pretty hungry, sweetie."

"Or she could just be a greedy little thing like her dad," he teased as he smiled at his fiancée and his baby cousin.

"There is that," she said chuckling. "So, what's in the box?"

"Ah, now that's why I was so rude when I first came in." Seeing her confused look, he explained. "I've got you a surprise…for the wedding and I wanted to give it to you on the day."

"You mean I have to wait another three days before I can open it." She pouted.

"Not good with surprises, huh?"

"I pretty much hate them what with me being so impatient. C'mon, let me open it now. I'll make it worth your while."

Nathan's mouth suddenly felt dry at hearing her words. "Uh…how do you mean?" he choked out a moment later.

Realising what her words must have sounded like had her blushing and she quickly shook her head. "Oh…no, I…uh…I meant I'd, um, cook you dinner tonight."

"Is that all?" he teased and saw the blush deepen even further.

"Nathan!"

"Sorry, couldn't resist."

"So, can I open it now?"

He thought about it for a moment before saying, "I'll tell you what, you can open it tonight because there might be a few things you need to get to go with it."

Tilting her head to one side, she regarded him curiously. "What did you buy me?"

"You'll just have to wait and see, now won't you? I'm going to take it upstairs and put it somewhere safe while you deal with little madam over there. I'll be back in a few minutes."

Haley watched him mount the stairs carrying the box and she shook her head again. Looking at the baby who had now finished her bottle, she couldn't help smiling. Walking into the kitchen again, she placed the empty bottle on the counter and adjusted the baby in her arms so she could burp her. "Don't worry sweetie, you'll help me get that mean ol' Nathan back later," she said with a giggle.

* * *

Upstairs, Nathan went into the room he'd given to Haley for whenever she came over and he placed the large box on top of the bed. He bit his lip as he looked at it for a long moment and hoped that she liked what he had bought for her. If she didn't, it wasn't that big of a deal and he could return it, but he wanted to do this for her. Staring at it for a couple of seconds more, he finally turned and left the room.

He froze in his tracks as he entered the kitchen and saw her cuddling little Gracie, her tuneful voice the only sound as she sung a gentle lullaby. This wasn't the first time he had seen her with his baby cousin but each time he felt something tug at his heart and he knew without a doubt that she would be a wonderful mother when she had her own children. He just wished…

Shaking his head in an attempt to rid himself of that particular thought, he coughed to make his presence known and he watched as she turned to face him, a smile tugging at her lips.

"Ah, there you are. Did you manage to hide the box somewhere I can't get my hands on it?" she teased and she saw him smirk back at her.

"Maybe, maybe not. I guess you'll just have to wait and see."

Looking at the baby in her arms, she said, "Ooh, he's asking for it, isn't he sweetheart?"

"You better not be turning my innocent little cousin against me, Haley."

"Don't worry, you're still her favourite. Here, why don't you take her while I get us something to drink?"

"She…she hasn't done anything, has she? You wouldn't be nasty enough to try and get me back that way."

Haley laughed. "No, she hasn't yet, but she did gulp that bottle down pretty fast so be prepared."

"Very funny." Holding his arms out, he took the baby from her and cuddled her close to his chest. "Hey Gracie, you wouldn't do that to me, now would you? Nah, course not. You need to save that stuff for your daddy."

"Ooh, you're evil," Haley told him with a chuckle as she opened the fridge door and removed a couple of bottles of water from the rack.

"I know," he replied popping a kiss onto the baby's head. "So, you still on for cooking dinner for us?"

"You talking to me or Gracie?"

"I didn't realise I was marrying a comedian."

"Ha! Yeah, if you want me to I will. I don't know what the present is yet but I guess I should still say thank you for it. What would you like to eat?"

"There's some chicken in the fridge; we could grill or bake that or we could always call for take-out."

"We might as well use the chicken and if you've got any lemons, I can make you my Mom's famous lemon pepper chicken."

"Yep, there should be lemons in the fruit dish," he said walking over to check. "Yep, there are three; that enough for the recipe?"

"Uh huh. Why don't you take Gracie into the living room and entertain her while I get started."

"I could give you a hand," he offered, giving her a smile.

"No, that's okay. I'll give you a shout if I need any help though."

Nodding her at, he shifted the baby carefully in his arms. "C'mon munchkin, let's go watch TV and get out of Haley's hair."

Haley couldn't help smiling at the closeness she was witnessing between the two of them and while she knew he had concerns and even fears over fatherhood, due mainly to the way he had been treated by his own father, she knew without a shadow of a doubt that he'd be a great dad when the time came.

* * *

A few hours later Brooke had come by to collect her daughter, leaving Nathan and Haley alone for the rest of the evening. They had eaten dinner and were now doing the dishes or rather he was washing the dishes while she dried them and put them away.

"That meal was fantastic," he said turning his head to the side to look at her.

"Thanks, I'm glad you liked it. It was one of the first things my Mom taught me to make."

"I guess it's something I can thank her for when I finally meet her."

Biting her lip, Haley nodded. That wasn't a meeting she was particularly looking forward to. She knew her parents weren't going to take the news of her having gotten married so suddenly and without her telling them well at all.

"I'm guessing from the look on your face that you don't particularly want that to happen."

"It's not because of you though, Nathan, so please don't think that. It's just…they're going to go nuts at the fact that I've done this without saying a single word to them about it. They don't even know I'm "dating", she said, using her fingers to make quote marks.

Not for the first time he sighed. "I'm sorry ab--"

"No, don't apologise. It's my fault. I probably should have called them after I'd agreed to marry you and at least just mentioned that I'd met someone. Now, not only do I have to tell them I've met someone but that I've married him. I'm just dreading that conversation."

"This is probably a bad idea, but…you could just not tell them."

She chuckled softly. "Oh believe me, I've thought about that but they know me too well. They'd be able to tell from my voice that something was up plus there's the fact that I'm going to be living with you. They know I wouldn't live with a guy without being married first. It's something I've been teased about for years," she confessed.

Handing her a dish to dry, he gave her a confused look. "How do you mean?"

"Just that compared to some of my siblings, I'm pretty old-fashioned in my ways. One of my sisters in particular is a bit of a sl--" Realising what she had almost said, she coughed to try and cover it up and quickly said, "Let's just say she's more like the women you usually, uh, hang out with."

Nathan smirked. "Well, I'm glad it's you I met here and not her. Out of my former…uh…dates, there's not one I could imagine spending the next three years with. I think I'd end up giving up on the deal and letting my Dad's lawyers give the money away as no doubt he'd have wanted."

Placing the dish she was holding onto the counter, Haley touched her hand to his arm and gave it a gentle squeeze. "We're not going to let that happen and have him win."

Smiling at her, he leaned forward and kissed her cheek. His nose brushed her hair as he moved away and he smelled the fresh scent of it. One thing he could say about her was she always smelled wonderful. There were no heavy, clinging perfumes that some of the women he knew doused themselves in and which almost made him choke.

She blushed at their closeness and took a small step away from him, even though it was the last thing she wanted to do. "So, uh, is it present time yet?"

Rinsing the last dish, he handed it to her and nodded. "You're an impatient thing, aren't you?"

"Yep. Like I said before, I hate surprises. It's just the not knowing that gets to me."

Laughing, he said, "That's the whole point of a surprise. If you knew what it was, it wouldn't be a surprise."

"Whatever," she teased, poking her tongue out at him. "So, can I go and see what it is?"

"Yeah but before you do, I just want you to know that it's no big deal. I mean, if you don't like it or anything, I can return it to the store. I hope you like it though." Seeing the way she was shifting from foot to foot in obvious impatience, he laughed again and said, "Go on. It's upstairs on the bed in your room. I'll be up in a couple of minutes."

Haley took off running and he heard her footsteps climbing the stairs. Finishing up in the kitchen, he was at the foot of the stairs when he heard her scream.

"Oh my god!"

He couldn't tell from her voice if she sounded happy or not and taking a deep breath, he climbed the stairs and made his way to her room. Standing in the doorway, he couldn't help smiling as he watched her holding up against herself what had been contained in the box.

"Do you like it?" he asked in a quiet voice and she spun around to face him.

"Y-You bought me a wedding dress."

Nathan nodded. "Yeah, I did. So, do you like it?"

"It's beautiful but…I-I don't understand. I thought we were just going to go for smart casual. Do people even get married in white gowns at the courthouse?"

"I know but…I just wanted to make it a bit more special for you. And who cares what other people wear to get married there. There's nothing wrong with being different," he joked before his tone turned serious. "I know it's going to be a marriage of convenience but…I don't know, Haley. It felt right doing this but if you don't think the same, I understand. Maybe I shouldn't have."

She quickly shook her head. "No, you were right to. I know it's not exactly going to be a real wedding…"

"The wedding will be real," he interrupted.

"You know what I mean," she said, giving him a crooked smile. "I kind of felt sad about getting married in my normal clothes but now…"

"Now what?"

"Now I get to married in a white dress."

"So you really like it?" He held his breath as he waited for her answer.

"It's perfect, Nathan, and you have beautiful taste. Thank you. It must have been pretty expensive though." As she spoke, she couldn't take her eyes off the dress she was holding. It was an ivory white silk gown made up of a strapless fitted bodice which had pretty flowered beading along the edge of it and a long, floor-length, flowing skirt and chapel train that also had the matching flower detail.

"Don't even think about that, okay. It's not like I can't afford it and if it makes you happy then that's all the thanks I need." The smile he was giving her stretched from ear to ear. "You should probably try it on and make sure it fits okay. I kinda had to guess about the size. Oh, and I didn't know if you had any shoes that might go with it so I was thinking that maybe tomorrow we could go out and buy you anything you need to go with it."

"Um…okay. I'm not working until tomorrow afternoon so I've got the morning free. Isn't it bad luck though for you to have seen the dress before the wedding?"

"Nah," he said with a wink. "You're stuck with me for the next three years whether you like it or not so luck isn't going to come into it. Besides, we're driving to the courthouse together so I'd see you before the ceremony anyway."

"I hadn't thought of that," she replied, giving him a cheeky smile. "Oh, did you speak to Lucas today about him and Brooke coming out with us?"

"Yeah, I did. I had to tell him what it was really about though since the big lug wouldn't stop pushing. He's like you when it comes to surprises. He's not going to say anything to Brooke but they're going to have to bring Gracie with them."

"That's fine, I'd love for her to be there with us. So will they drive down with us or…"

Nathan shook his head. "No, he's going to drive them down there after he's made up some excuse to Brooke. Can you imagine her face though when she sees you in a wedding dress?"

"Stop it," she said trying to sound stern although she joined in with his laugher. "I think we'll definitely be rendering her speechless."

"That she will be. Anyway, I'll leave you to try it on," he said as he started walking towards the door. "Oh, I was thinking that we should start moving the rest of your stuff here before the wedding."

"Yeah. We could maybe do that when we get back from shopping tomorrow," she suggested.

"Sounds good. Okay, I'll…er…leave you to it."

"Uh Nathan, do you want to see me in it?" she asked shyly.

"How about you surprise me on the day? We might as well make this feel a bit more traditional, what do you say?"

"You're right, we should. I'll, um, be down in a little while."

Giving her another nod, he turned and left the room even though he felt a strong urge to stay in there with her. Releasing an audible sigh, he made his descent downstairs.

Inside the room, Haley got undressed and slipped the dress on before realising that she needed somebody to actually fasten it for her. Despite it not being done up, it felt good on her and having already checked the label, she knew this was the right size. While wondering how on earth he had managed to guess her size so accurately, her fingers reverently touched the silky fabric and as she looked at herself in the floor length mirror, she felt like some kind of fairytale princess.

Gathering her hair up, she held it on top of her head and knew that this was how she should wear it on the day. As she stared at her reflected image, she couldn't help wishing that she was getting married for real and not just as some part of a deal. Feeling tears prickling behind her eyelids, she blinked a few times and forced them not to fall.

She slowly slipped the dress off and walking over to the large walk-in closet, she found a padded hanger and hung the dress up. Getting dressed again, she quickly went into the en suite bathroom and splashed her face with some cold water before patting her face dry with a soft towel. Once she had gathered herself together, she slowly left the room and went back downstairs.

* * *

"Can you believe that this time tomorrow we'll be married?" Nathan said a couple of nights later when he was dropping her back at her apartment. "It's not too late to back out, you know."

"I'm not backing out," she replied reassuringly. "I said I'd do this and I will. And from this point on you need to stop thanking me for what I'm doing. Agreed?"

"Agreed." He returned the smile she was giving him.

"Good. So, you're picking me up tomorrow morning and I'm getting ready at your place, right?"

"Uh huh. Is seven-thirty okay?"

"Wow, that early. You do realise we're not getting married until three," she said giggling.

"Yeah, but I figured we could maybe have…um…breakfast together or something before you need to get started on all your girly stuff plus it's taking place in Charlotte which isn't exactly up the street."

Haley's tummy fluttered at the fact that he wanted them to have breakfast together on their wedding day. "True, but it won't take me hours to get ready. I'm not that much of a girly-girl."

"Oh, thank heavens for that," he teased.

"Hey, there's still time for me to change my mind yet."

He held his hands up in mock surrender. "Okay, I take it back. I guess I'm just thinking about what Luke's told me about Brooke. It can literally take her all day to get ready for some evening event."

"You do know she's gonna be royally pissed when she finds out what's actually happening tomorrow, don't you?"

"Oh yeah, that's something I'm not looking forward to. Why do you think I was so keen on him bringing Gracie along with them."

"Good thinking, Batman."

"Thanks, Batgirl."

"Batgirl?"

"Okay, Robin."

Haley couldn't stop laughing. "You know something, I've got a feeling these three years aren't going to be so bad."

"Me either." Taking her hand in his, he continued, "This'll be the last time I do this, I swear, but thank you again for helping me. I appreciate it more than you could ever know and I promise you that you won't regret your decision."

"I know I won't."

Without thinking about what he was doing, he leaned in just as she did the same and their mouths softly touched for a moment before she eased away from him and looked up into his blue eyes which had darkened slightly. They were still such a vibrant blue though and she knew that if she wasn't careful, she could easily lose herself in them.

"Uh…I'd better go and let you get your beauty sleep…not that you need it," he quickly added.

"Nice save," she said teasingly. "Okay, so I'll see you bright and early tomorrow morning and we'll get this show on the road."

"Yeah, we will. Sweet dreams."

"You too," she said before closing her apartment door and leaning her back up against it as she caught her breath.

On the other side of it, Nathan was doing exactly the same as he forced himself to calm down. He didn't know what it was about her that made a simple, gentle kiss like that affect him so deeply. A part of him debated knocking on her door and this time kissing her the way he was dying to do while the more sensible part of him decided against it. Too much was at stake for him to get physically involved with her and also, he enjoyed her friendship too much to screw it up with sex. Besides, who knew what could happen in three years, he thought to himself as he shoved his hands into his pockets and began the walk downstairs back to his car.


	12. Chapter Twelve

**Author's Notes:** Thanks again for all of the wonderful feedback you guys are leaving for this story. It means a lot and I really appreciate it.

* * *

**Chapter Twelve**

The knock at her front door woke Haley out of her peaceful sleep and glancing over at her alarm clock, she saw that it was only six-thirty. Who the hell could it be at her door at this time of the morning? Pushing the covers aside, she climbed out of bed and grabbed her robe from where it hung on the back of her bedroom door. Shrugging it on, she made her way towards the front door and keeping the chain on, she opened it slightly and peered around it.

"Good morning."

"N-Nathan? What are you doing here? I thought you weren't coming over until seven-thirty."

"Yeah, I know but I had an idea this morning and—"

"And you couldn't have called first?" she joked.

"Sorry about that," he said sheepishly. "Can I come in?"

"Oh, sure. Hang on a sec." Closing the door, she removed the chain and then opened the door wider so he could enter the apartment. Once he was inside and she had closed the door, she asked, "Can I get you something to drink?"

Nathan shook his head. "No thanks."

"Okay. So, uh, what are you doing here so bright and early, waking me up from a very nice dream involving Orlando Bloom?"

"That pretty boy?"

She laughed. "Seriously, what brings you over here?"

"I realised that if you got ready at my place that it would mean us driving to Charlotte with you in your wedding dress and it's not exactly a twenty minute ride, so I figured I'd rent a couple of rooms in a hotel in Charlotte and we could get ready there and not have to rush and worry about traffic. What do you think?"

Haley smiled at him. "That's actually a pretty good idea. I don't want the dress getting badly creased and it would be if I wore it on the journey, not to mention it's not the most comfortable outfit to wear on a long car ride. Have you booked a hotel yet?"

"No, I wanted to ask you first. I did pack a bag though and it's in the trunk of the car," he said, smirking at her. "All you need to do is gather your stuff and we can be on our way."

"Do I have time to grab some breakfast?" she asked, cocking her head to the side.

"Sure, but don't eat too much." Seeing the outraged look on her face, he quickly added, "I just meant that I still want us to have breakfast together. I figure we'll be at the hotel by say ten/ten-thirty and I can let them know we'll be wanting breakfast when I book the rooms."

She felt her insides melt at his thoughtfulness and she smiled. "That sounds nice."

Nathan returned her smile and couldn't help letting his eyes wander over her. Even first thing in the morning she looked gorgeous with her tousled hair, no make-up and wearing a simple purple and white plaid dressing gown. With it being fairly long and hitting her past her knees, he couldn't help wondering what she was wearing underneath it.

He watched as she wandered into the kitchen and filled the kettle with water before getting a mug out of the cupboard and spooning some instant coffee into it. Walking over to her, he said, "Hey, why don't you go start getting ready and I'll make the coffee while I call a hotel and make the reservations?"

Haley nodded. "Okay, thanks." Placing her hand on his wrist, she gave it a gentle squeeze and then went to go and start getting ready for the day ahead.

After doing what she had to do in the bathroom, she went into her bedroom and got dressed into her black pants and dark green sweater and then ran a brush through her hair. She had already packed her bag the night before with all of the things she was going to need to get ready for the wedding so she was pretty much all ready to go. Looking around her sparse room, she knew she wouldn't miss it at all.

The previous day, they had moved the rest of her meagre belongings into his house and so the apartment looked even emptier than it had done already.

Taking a deep breath, she picked up her bag and went back into the living room where Nathan was just finishing up his phone call. Picking up her mug from the kitchen counter, she took a small sip of the hot liquid and let the caffeine begin its work in reviving her from her still sleepy state.

"Well that's all booked," he told her as he watched her drinking her coffee. "And I was thinking, we can hit a drive thru on the way to Charlotte."

"Seeing as there isn't anything here, that sounds good," she told him with a chuckle.

"So, how did you sleep last night?"

"Like a log until someone woke me up at the crack of dawn."

He laughed. "Sorry about that. I don't know why I didn't think of us getting ready in Charlotte before."

"It's okay." Finishing off her coffee, she tipped the dregs down the sink before rinsing her mug and leaving it on the side. "Right, I'm ready when you are," she said going over to grab her jacket which she pulled on and then picking up her bag.

Nathan returned her smile and took the bag from her before going over to the door and opening it. He watched as she took one last look around the place before she followed him out and taking her hand in his free one, he said, "Let's get this show on the road."

* * *

"So tell me again, where exactly are we going?"

Lucas Scott inwardly sighed at his wife's question as he drove her and their daughter to meet with Nathan and Haley. "I told you, babe, we're meeting Nathan and Haley in Charlotte."

"I know that, I meant where exactly in Charlotte. And why do they want us to meet them there anyway?"

He shook his head. "I don't know."

"What do you mean 'you don't know'? Surely you know _where_ we'll be meeting them."

"Not exactly," he lied. "He just told me where I should park the car and that he and Haley would be there to meet us."

"I don't get any of this," the brunette said shaking her head. "I don't get what the big secret is and why we had to get all dressed up. It makes no sense."

"I guess we'll find out soon enough, honey." Glancing in the rear view mirror, he smiled as he watched his daughter sleeping peacefully.

"Does Deb know what's going on? Is she going to be meeting us there too?"

"Uh…not as far as I know." Yeah, as if his cousin would be mentioning this to her, he thought to himself. From what Nathan had told him, his aunt wasn't exactly thrilled with him dating Haley. God only knew what she was going to say when she found out what her only son had gone and done. He only hoped he wouldn't be anywhere in the vicinity when that conversation took place.

"Are you sure you don't know what's going on, Luke?"

He mentally cursed himself for having to lie, something he hated to do and especially to his wife, but in this instance he had no choice. "I haven't got a clue," he finally said giving her a quick glance before his eyes returned to the road.

Brooke's eyes concentrated on her husband's face as she tried to tell if he was keeping something from her but when his expression remained passive, she felt sure he wasn't and she relaxed in her seat. Oh well, she'd know soon enough.

* * *

As Haley sat in her hotel room getting ready for her wedding, the butterflies in her stomach were fluttering full force and she actually felt a little queasy which probably also had something to do with the huge breakfast she had eaten when they had first arrived.

On the way to Charlotte they had hit a drive-thru McDonalds and ordered something to get them through the journey but once they had arrived at the hotel, Nathan had ordered a ton of stuff for them to eat up in their room. The pastries and croissants had literally melted in her mouth as she had eaten them but now she was paying the price as they threatened to reappear.

Going over to the French windows, she opened them and breathed in the fresh air that instantly blew in her face. Slowly, she started to feel a bit better and leaving the doors open, she went back over to the vanity unit and added the finishing touches to her make-up. She had never been one to wear a lot of make-up and, in keeping with that, she had kept it light so that she felt comfortable with her appearance. Her hair was piled up onto her head and secured with some delicate butterfly clips and a few loose curls hung down and framed her face.

She sprayed some of her favourite perfume onto her wrists and parting the robe she was wearing a little, she spritzed a little onto the base of her neck. Standing up, she walked over to where her dress was hanging up and as she did so, she couldn't stop a tiny smile from creeping onto her face as she looked at the beautiful garment.

Removing it from the padded hanger, she slipped it on and then instantly remembered that she was going to need some help fastening it. Going over to the door which would lead out to the rest of the suite, she opened it and popped her head around it.

"Nathan?"

The man in question was sitting on the couch flicking through the TV channels and turning his head slightly, he replied, "Yeah?"

"Um, could you come here for a second, please? I need a little help doing my dress up."

Pushing himself up off the comfortable couch, he smiled as he headed towards her. "So much for me not seeing the dress before the ceremony, huh?"

Haley giggled. "Yeah, but it's not that far until the ceremony so it doesn't count," she offered, giving him a wink. Opening the door wider, she took a step back so he could enter the room and she frowned at the look on his face. "W-What is it? It doesn't look good, does it?"

"What? No Haley, that's not why… You…you look amazing," he managed to choke out eventually. When he had first seen the dress in the store, he had known it would look perfect on her but now perfect didn't even begin to describe the way she looked in it. The ivory white silk looked fantastic against her lightly tanned skin and the bodice fit her upper body like a glove, pushing up her ample cleavage and displaying it very nicely. The long skirt flared out and he could just make out her pink painted toenails peeking out from underneath it.

"Really?" she asked shyly as she looked down at the dress.

Closing the gap between them, Nathan placed his fingertips under her chin and brought her face up so he could look into her eyes. "Really. I knew you'd look beautiful in that dress but you look even more breathtaking than I could've even imagined." His fingers moved from her chin to cup her cheek and he cradled it tenderly in his palm.

Without thinking about what she was doing, she leaned into his touch and closed her eyes at the sensation of his warm skin touching hers. A few seconds later she felt his mouth press against hers and instinctively she parted her lips, allowing his tongue entrance inside. Wrapping one arm around his neck, the other wrapped around his waist as she kissed him back; tentatively at first but increasing in passion with every passing second.

He broke the kiss several moments later and leaning his forehead against hers, he smiled. "I don't know whether to apologise for that or not," he confessed.

"Do you want to apologise for it?" she asked in a quiet voice.

Nathan shook his head. "No. Do you want me to apologise?"

"No," she replied instantly, her fingers playing with the short hairs at the nape of his neck.

"I'm glad. I…uh…I don't know what this means, Haley, but—"

Haley felt a swirl of disappointment hit her right in the gut and she was instantly reminded of his words about this just being a business relationship between them, but she didn't let her disappointment show on her face. Instead, she took a step back from him and forced herself to smile. "It doesn't have to mean anything. We just got caught up in the moment. It's no big deal." Taking another step back, she turned around so her back was to him. "Can you zip me up, please?"

Hearing her words, he felt as though he had just been punched in the chest. It was a big deal…to him at least. And he could have sworn the same could be said for her but now he wasn't so sure. With trembling fingers, he drew the zipper up the back of the dress before dropping his hand back to his side.

"Thanks," she muttered quietly as she began walking away from him. Before she could get too far, his fingers had grabbed her wrist and he had spun her around to face him. "Nathan? Wha—"

His mouth was back on hers before he could think about what the hell he was doing. He was careful not to mess up her hair, knowing that they needed to get going soon, but his fingers danced along the back of her neck and trailed down her bare back, revelling in the silky softness of her skin which just smelled so damn wonderful.

Haley didn't care about Nathan's hair as her fingers buried themselves in the thick, dark mass. Her tongue explored every nook and cranny of his mouth, familiarising herself with it and making mental notes of what earned the loudest gasps and moans from him.

Breaking the kiss to breathe in some air, she buried her face against his neck as she slowly allowed herself to calm down. Her entire body felt overheated and her heart was racing wildly in her chest. The fact that Nathan's fingers were stroking over her naked back and shoulders wasn't helping to calm her down at all.

"Just so you know, that wasn't me being caught up in the moment."

Moving her head so she could look up at him, she bit her lip before admitting, "It wasn't for me either."

"B-But you said…"

"I know," she quickly interrupted. "I thought I'd get in first before you said it."

"I wasn't gonna say it."

"I-I know that now," she said shyly. Taking a small, deep breath, she asked him the question that had entered her mind the moment his lips had touched hers that second time. "Not to sound all girly, but…uh…what does this mean?"

Taking her hand in his, he stroked his fingers over her knuckles. "I don't know but I'd like to find out. And I know this couldn't have happened at a worse time what with us about to get married, never mind the fact that Brooke is about to land on us, but—"

Haley stopped his ramble by pressing her lips to his and kissing him softly. "I'd like to find out too."

Nathan couldn't stop the smile from spreading across his face. "Really?"

"Really," she said returning his smile. "Look, we're going to be getting married regardless of…what's going on with us right now so how about we put that to the backburner, just for today?"

Wrapping his arms around her waist, he nodded. Kissing her mouth lightly, he pulled back and said, "That's a good idea."

"Okay then, we'd better finish getting ready because I'm sure Brooke and Lucas will be arriving soon and we're going to be facing a million questions from her as it is without worrying about everything else."

"You're right, and speaking of the two of them, I called Lucas just before and told him our room number so they can come up here. The last thing we need is her shouting the odds in the lobby or worse, in the street."

"Good thinking. By the way, I forgot to tell you before but you look very handsome in your suit." From the moment she had seen him in it, she had had even more trouble than usual taking her eyes off of him. Black was a great colour on him and the pale blue shirt and darker blue tie brought out the colour of his eyes which was an added bonus.

"Thanks," he said giving her a nod. "I'll, uh, leave you to it and…"

"Okay. I'm pretty much ready so I'll be out in a few minutes."

They stared at each other for a few more moments, smiles tugging at their lips before he finally turned and left the room, closing the door behind him.

Once outside, he leaned his back against the wood and breathed a huge sigh. What the hell had just happened in there? He didn't regret kissing her for a second but it was just so unexpected. Yeah, he felt attracted to Haley and had done from the moment he had met her but this…this wasn't supposed to happen. He had been the one to tell her from the outset that this was purely a business arrangement between them and now he'd gone and kissed her. Fuck!

Walking over to the couch, he slumped back into his seat and stared at the TV that was still playing. He was intrigued to find out what this was between them but in all seriousness, could he afford to do that? So much was at stake. What would happen if things didn't work out between them; could they continue living as husband and wife for the next three years while being at each other's throats? He had never been in a long term relationship so the prospects didn't exactly look good for him.

Leaning back, he closed his eyes and immediately a picture of Haley in her wedding dress popped into his head and he instantly smiled. There was just something about her that seemed to be able to calm him down while still raising his temperature, amongst other things. She was such a good person with a generous heart and the last thing he ever wanted to do was hurt her, yet he couldn't help thinking that he would end up doing just that. And the other thing was that she was so much younger than him. Maybe Lucas had been in the wrong introducing him to her and—

The knock at the door cut off his internal dialogue with himself and getting up from the couch, he made the short walk to the door and with one final deep breath he opened it and saw his family standing there.

"Hey Luke, Brooke, come on in." He opened the door wider and stepped back allowing them to enter. His cousin was carrying a sleeping Gracie in his arms and he was sort of hoping that would mean no shouting as he was sure Brooke wouldn't want to wake her daughter up unnecessarily.

"What's going on, Nathan? Why are we all here in Charlotte and why are we all dressed up?"

"Which question do you want me to answer first?"

"Don't get smart with me. Lucas may not have asked any questions but I sure as hell am. So, what's going on and, by the way, where's Haley? I thought she was supposed to be here too."

"Don't worry, she's here. Let me just go and get her and then we'll answer all of your questions."

"Fine," the brunette replied as she took a seat on the couch beside her husband and smoothed down the skirt of her dark pink dress. She watched as her cousin-in-law disappeared through another door and she tapped her foot impatiently as she waited for him to return with Haley.

"Look, just remember to keep your voice down," Lucas said quietly as he cradled Gracie in his arms. "We don't want to wake her up yet."

"Well it's almost time for her feed so she'll be waking up soon anyway."

"I know but let her wake up on her own. You know how cranky she gets if she wakes up before she's ready," he reminded his wife.

"Tell me about it," she said, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips. "Apparently Karen told me she gets that from you."

"Very funny. You know—"

The words died on his lips as he saw a flash of white and looking up, Lucas saw Haley enter the room dressed in a white wedding gown. Well, this would leave Brooke in no doubt as to what they were here in Charlotte for, he thought to himself. And he mentally prepared himself for his daughter to suddenly be woken up because there was no way in hell his wife was going to be quiet now.

"Luke? What's wr—"

This time it was Brooke who was rendered speechless as she turned to see what her husband was looking at and she saw Haley exit the room Nathan had just a few minutes ago entered. Her mouth dropped open as she took in the particular type of dress her friend was wearing and she couldn't fail to notice how beautiful she looked in it.

Standing up, the brunette walked over to where the young woman was and it didn't take a genius to figure out how nervous she looked. She was wringing her hands together until Nathan took them in his and rubbed his thumbs over the tops of them. Almost instantly, she seemed to calm down and Brooke stared at the couple before her in fascination. Never in all the time she had known Nathan Scott had she seen anything like this. She couldn't remember him ever holding a girl's hand period and that was saying something considering the number of girls he'd hooked up with during their high school years.

"Brooke, we…"

"How long?"

Haley looked to her fiancé for a moment before her gaze returned to Brooke's. "What do you mean?"

"How long have you been planning to get married?"

"Um…" She paused and looked to Nathan who simply nodded his head and so she replied, "A few weeks."

"So all those times we've seen each and hung out together you've been keeping this from me? I thought we were friends, Haley."

"We are friends. You're the first real friend I've made here and our friendship means a lot to me. I…we wanted to tell you but—"

"But what?" Shifting her gaze to Nathan, she said, "I'm part of your family, Nathan. Don't you think you could have told me…told Lucas, your own cousin for that matter?"

"Brooke, you can be pissed at me as much as you can, that's fine. But don't take this out on Haley, okay. I'm the one who wanted to keep this quiet and the main reason for that is that I didn't want my Mom to find out."

"I don't understand. She's your mother and she loves you so wh—"

"She doesn't approve of Haley," he said simply. "She's pretty much just tolerating us dating because she thinks I'm going to get bored and move on plus there's the whole fact that I don't even live in Tree Hill anymore which has her thinking that I'll be going back to Chicago soon and leaving Haley behind."

The brunette's head was in a spin at everything she was hearing and she stared at both Nathan and Haley in turn before moving back to sit on the couch. "I think I need a drink."

"Remember honey, you're still breastfeeding," Lucas pointed out.

"Thanks for the reminder, _Sweetie_," she replied sarcastically. "So how do you think Deb's going to feel when she finds out you got married without her being there? She's going to be devastated."

"Are you kidding me? She's going to be pissed off beyond belief and if she's devastated it'll only be because I've gone and married a waitress and not one of the socialites she's always envisioned setting me up with."

Turning to look at her husband, Brooke asked, "Aren't you going to say something?"

"What do you want me to say? They're adults, honey, and there's nothing we can do or say to stop this."

Titling her head to one side, she regarded him closely. "You knew about this, didn't you? You knew exactly why we were coming to Charlotte today?"

"What!? No, I didn't. I thought we were just coming here to have lunch with them or something. Seeing Haley in a wedding dress is as much a shock to me as it is to you," Lucas told her, happy that at least part of what he was saying was true. Despite knowing he was going to be attending his cousin's wedding today, the last thing he had expected to see was the bride-to-be dressed in a full wedding gown.

"We wanted to tell you both but we couldn't risk Deb finding out beforehand. There's no way she would have let this take place," Haley told them, focusing her eyes on Brooke's face. "Initially we were going to have strangers as witnesses but then we changed our minds because we wanted to have you be a part of our special day."

The words went to Brooke's heart and she felt a smile tug at the corners of her lips. "I'm glad you changed your mind," she said getting up off the couch and moving towards her friend and gathering her in a hug. Releasing her after a few moments, she stepped back and looked Haley up and down. "You look beautiful and that dress is just gorgeous."

Blushing, the auburn haired young woman smiled shyly. "Nathan bought it for me as a surprise. We were just going to get married in our normal clothes but it was another thing we changed our minds on."

Brooke stared at her outraged. "You were going to get married in your normal clothes? No, no, that would have been so wrong." Taking the younger woman by the hand, she began leading her towards the door that she had come through a few minutes earlier.

"What are you doing?" Nathan asked.

"I'm just borrowing her for a few moments so don't get your boxers in a bunch," she teased before her and Haley disappeared through the door and she had closed it behind them.

Walking over to the couch, Nathan dropped down beside his cousin and sighed loudly. "I'm sorry you got caught up in all of this, man."

"Don't worry about it, at least she knows now and she seems to believe I didn't have a clue which is good news for me. The last thing I want is to end up in the spare room back home because she's kicked me out of our bedroom."

"Yeah. Hey, do you want a drink or something before we head out?"

"Sure, I'll get it though. You take Gracie for a second since my arms feel like they've gone to sleep."

As gently as he could so as not to wake her up, Nathan took the sleeping baby from his cousin and cradled her in his arms, marvelling at the way she snuggled against him. He trailed one finger down her chubby little cheek and lowering his head, he kissed her on the top of her head.

From where he stood at the mini bar, Lucas watched his cousin and daughter and he smiled at the scene in front of him. If certain people could see him now, his reputation would be cut to shreds since this was as far removed as you could get from the tough businessman persona that he usually portrayed.

"And what are you smirking at?" Nathan asked as he caught Lucas's eye.

"Nothing, nothing at all."

Meanwhile, inside the other room, Haley sat on the bed while Brooke stood in front of her.

"Why did you bring me in here, Brooke?"

"I just wanted to make sure you know what you're doing? I mean, are you seriously telling me you want to marry Nathan?"

"Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying. Look, I know I haven't been seeing him for long but I-I…"

"You what?"

"I love him." As Haley said the words, she realised that she wasn't exactly lying to her friend. While she might not be in love with him completely yet, she was definitely falling in love with him and she knew that it probably wouldn't be long until she was head over heels.

"But, he…uh… He…"

"What? I know this seems crazy fast but it feels right for both of us. I've never felt this way about anyone before and I know he's the one for me."

"I just can't help feeling that you're making a mistake, Haley. You don't know him like I do, like the rest of us do and—"

Haley could feel herself getting angry. This was exactly the sort of thing Brooke and Deb used to talk about before she had met Nathan and thanks to them she had conjured up an inaccurate picture of what he must be like. The man she had met and come to know was nothing like what they had described to her.

"Actually, you don't know him like I do. He has been nothing but sweet and kind and generous to me and before you say it, this has nothing to do with me wanting to get my hands on his money so don't even go there. You know, if you can't be happy for us and share in our day, then maybe you should go back to Tree Hill."

Turning her back on her friend, Haley took a few deep breaths as she fought to calm down. The last thing she wanted was to fight with Brooke but she hated having her concentrate on the bad parts of Nathan, the parts that he had left in his past and had successfully moved away from.

"Haley, I'm sorry. I-I just care about you and I don't want to see you get hurt, that's all. You're right though, Nathan has changed and it's unfair for me to always be talking about the way he was in high school." Walking over to the younger woman, she placed a hand on her shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze.

"I'm glad you care about me… I care about you too," she told Brooke as she turned around to face her and once again they hugged each other. "We'd better get back out there before Nathan thinks you've managed to change my mind."

"Sure, but before we do I want to give you something." Unclasping the silver cross necklace she was wearing, the brunette placed it around her friend's neck and refastened it. "There, that can be your something old since I've had it forever and your something borrowed."

Tears welled up in Haley's eyes and she hugged her friend again, grateful for the sweet gesture. "Thank you."

"No thanks necessary," she told her before asking, "Do you have a something new and something blue?"

She nodded. "Well, the dress is new so I guess I can go with that and, um, I have a blue garter on."

"Nice. I'm sure Nathan will appreciate that. Um, I sort of have one last question to ask about what the two of you are doing and after that I promise not to bring anything up about it again."

"Uh, okay. What is it?"

"Are you getting married because you, uh, need to or because you want to?"

Haley frowned at the question until the penny dropped and she realised exactly what it was Brooke was getting at and she could feel herself blushing. "Oh! No, it's not what you're thinking. We're getting married because we want to," she replied, knowing that it wasn't strictly true but then again, it definitely wasn't for the reason that her friend was thinking. Brooke probably wouldn't believe her anyway if she told her that her and Nathan weren't even having sex.

"Okay, good. I just didn't want you to feel that you had to get married for that particular reason because, you know, these days it's fine to be unmarried if you're pregnant."

"Not for some people it isn't."

"You mean like your parents?"

"No, I was referring more to Deb. While she's not exactly thrilled at her son's choice of girlfriend, I think it'd be a million times worse if he'd knocked me up," she said chuckling.

"Unfortunately, you're not wrong. You do realise things are going to be pretty bad when she finds out what the two of you have done, don't you?"

Haley nodded. "Yeah, but this is Nathan's call. And anyway, we'll be going to Chicago in a few weeks time so I won't have to see her much."

"That's true. I'm going to miss not having you around here," Brooke told her.

"I'll miss you too, but we can talk on the phone and I'm sure we'll be coming back there often. And, of course, you can come up and see us."

"I know, it won't be the same though."

Instead of saying anything, Haley embraced her again and released a quiet sigh of relief at the fact that her friendship with the other woman hadn't been affected, although should the truth ever be revealed, that would probably be another story entirely.

* * *

Less than an hour later, Nathan and Haley were standing before a Judge in the local courthouse with Lucas, Brooke and a now wide awake and gurgling Gracie as their only witnesses. Her nerves were a jumbled mess and glancing over at Nathan she saw he was already looking at her and she felt herself immediately relax.

"Are you okay?" he whispered and she could hear another question mixed in with that one.

"Yeah, I'm fine. You?"

"I'm fine, too."

She smiled warmly at him and linking their hands, they waited for the Judge to start the ceremony.

"Are you both ready?" The Judge asked a moment later and receiving a nod from the couple standing before him, he started the proceedings.

"Nathan and Haley, today you celebrate one of life's greatest moments and give recognition to the worth and beauty of love, as you join together in vows of marriage."

Nathan could feel the tremble in Haley's hand and he gave it a light squeeze as he listened to the older man's words.

"Nathan Daniel Scott, do you take Haley Marie James to be your Wife?"

Turning and giving her a smile, he replied, "I do."

"Do you promise to love, honor, cherish and protect her, forsaking all others and holding only unto her?"

"I do."

"Haley Marie James, do you take Nathan Daniel Scott to be your Husband?"

Returning his smile, she replied, "I do."

"Do you promise to love, honor, cherish and protect him, forsaking all others and holding only unto him?"

"I do."

Taking her hand in his, Nathan held a thin white gold band at the tip of her wedding ring finger as he said, "I Nathan Daniel Scott, take thee, Haley Marie James to be my Wife. To have and to hold, in sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer, and I promise my love to you." Slowly pushing the ring down, he added, "With this ring, I thee wed."

Removing a matching white gold ring that she had placed on her thumb for safekeeping, she placed it at the tip of Nathan's finger as she repeated the words he had just said. "I Haley Marie James, take thee Nathan Daniel Scott, to be my husband. To have and to hold, in sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer, and I promise my love to you." Sliding the ring down to the base of his finger, she too added, "With this ring, I thee wed."

Haley couldn't help sneaking a look behind her and she saw Brooke smiling along with her as she gently rocked Gracie in her arms. Turning back to face the Judge, she listened to the words he was saying.

"Nathan and Haley, just as two very different threads woven in opposite directions can form a beautiful tapestry, so can your two lives merge together to form a very beautiful marriage. To make your marriage work will take love. Love should be the core of your marriage, love is the reason you are here. But it also will take trust** -** to know in your hearts you want the best for each other. It will take dedication** - **to stay open to one another; to learn and to grow together even when this is not always so easy to do. It will take faith** - **to always be willing to go forward to tomorrow, never really knowing what tomorrow will bring. And it will take commitment** - **to hold true to the journey you both now pledge to share together."

"Nathan and Haley, in so much as the two of you have agreed to live together in Matrimony, have promised your love for each other by these vows, I now declare you to be Husband and Wife."

"Congratulations, you may kiss your bride."

In that moment, everything around them disappeared as they looked into each other's eyes and smiled. Nathan's hands came up to cup Haley's face and he simply looked at her for a moment before he covered her mouth with his and kissed her softly.

His heart which had been thumping wildly in his chest instantly seemed to return to its normal beat as he kissed his new bride. Something about this felt…it felt right and he made a silent promise to himself that whatever happened between him and Haley, he would never hurt her.

Breaking the kiss, Haley felt herself blush as she looked into her husband's eyes. Husband. God, just thinking it felt weird. Turning her gaze to the Judge, she thanked him after Nathan did and together they signed the marriage certificate. The older man again congratulated them before walking away from them and leaving them alone. They were just about to walk over to where Lucas and Brooke were waiting for them when a thought occurred to her and she whispered her question to him.

"I didn't think the ceremony would've been so…um…"

"Romantic? Yeah, I know. It wasn't supposed to be but after what happened…you know, between us earlier on, I wanted it to be a bit more, uh, special. Was that not okay?"

She quickly shook her head. "It was perfect, Nathan. I'm glad you did that."

"Good," he said before leaning down and kissing her again.

"C'mon you two, you've got plenty of time for all that mushy stuff later," Lucas teased.

"Ignore him," Brooke interjected. "He hasn't got a romantic bone in his body."

Knowing how the two of them could be, Nathan quickly interrupted. "How about we get out of here and go celebrate? I booked a table at an Italian restaurant not too far from here."

"Great, I'm starving," the brunette said. "Do you want to go back to the hotel and get changed, Haley?"

"Uh, I—"

"Leave it on," Nathan said jumping in. "Unless you want to get changed."

"No, it's okay, I'll leave it on. I'll get changed before we head back to Tree Hill."

"Wait, you're coming back home today? I figured you'd book yourselves into the honeymoon suite or something and celebrate. Speaking of, where are you going on your honeymoon?"

Haley quickly looked to Nathan who looked as stunned as she did at the sudden line of questioning.

"We, uh, couldn't get the honeymoon suite and as for a honeymoon, getting married was a little last minute plus things are a little crazy with work so we're going to organise something later," Nathan said hoping that would satisfy his cousin-in-law.

"Oh, okay. Well, I'm sure you could manage to stay overnight at the hotel and enjoy your wedding night at least."

"You're right. I'll get right on that," Nathan quipped which caused the others to laugh.

"It's fine, Brooke. The beach house is gorgeous and I'm looking forward to getting back there tonight. And like Nathan said, we can arrange a great honeymoon for when things calm down."

Exiting the courthouse, Lucas took the camera he was holding out of its case and gestured for them to gather together on the steps. "C'mon, let's get a shot of the happy couple."

Moving closer together, they wrapped their arms around each other and smiled for the camera. Thinking that Lucas had finished, they turned to look at each other and didn't even hear the clicking of the camera as he snapped a few more shots.

"Okay, Brooke, Gracie, you get in there with them." He took a few more pictures and when a middle-aged couple was about to walk past them, he asked if they'd mind taking a picture of all of them. He quickly moved to stand beside his wife, and they smiled happily as a picture was taken of all of them.

After they had thanked the couple, they began walking towards the restaurant that Nathan had booked a table at.

"So listen, we'd appreciate it if you kept this whole thing to yourselves for a while. We're planning on speaking to my Mom as soon as we get back but we don't want you to assume we've done it so until you hear from one of us that we've told her, don't say anything."

Lucas nodded. "Sure. Your secret's safe with us, right honey?"

"Of course. I won't say a word to anyone." Seeing the incredulous look on Nathan's face, she gave him a scowl. "Hey! I know I like to gossip but I wouldn't do that to you guys."

"Okay, thanks. We'll probably go and see her tomorrow evening and do it then."

"Good luck with that."

Haley felt a sudden attack of nerves at the thought of telling Deb what they had just done and her hand which was holding Nathan's squeezed his tightly.

"Hey, it'll be okay. And besides, we won't have to see her for too much longer since we'll be leaving for Chicago in a couple of weeks time."

"I know, I just know she isn't going to take it well."

"Well, that's her problem, not ours."

Reaching the restaurant, Nathan held the door open for Haley and the others but before she could walk through it, Brooke stopped her. "Why don't you boys go in and get the table? Haley and I will follow in a minute."

Seeing Nathan's hesitation, Haley nodded at him and after he had kissed her on the cheek, he followed his cousin who had taken Gracie out of Brooke's arms.

"I just want you to know that I've got your back. Actually, we've got your back, you know, regarding the Deb situation. I know I'm close to her but you're one of my best friends, Haley, and she won't influence that. Seeing how nervous you are about what might happen, I just wanted to tell you that now."

Haley felt tears prickling at her eyelids and she squeezed them shut for a moment as she willed them not to fall. Holding out her arms, she hugged the other woman for a long moment. "Thank you, Brooke. That means…it means so much to me."

"You're welcome. Now, let's get in there and order up a storm. I've a feeling you're going to be needing your energy tonight." Seeing the blush on her friend's face, she laughed. "Aww, that blushing thing is so cute."

Shaking her head, Haley giggled while she tried to ignore the flip her stomach had done at what Brooke had insinuated. Right now, she was just going to enjoy having lunch with her new family and celebrating her wedding. There was time to worry about everything else later.


	13. Chapter Thirteen

**Author's Notes:** Thanks again to everyone who's given me feedback for this story. It's very much appreciated and I'm really glad you're all still enjoying the story.

* * *

**Chapter Thirteen**

"Nathan! C'mon, put me down!" Haley squealed as her new husband carried her over the threshold to the beach house.

"Nope, it's tradition and seeing as our getting together has pretty much been anything but traditional, I think it's a good idea to stick to as many of them as we can," Nathan teased. Once inside, he gently put her down before collecting their bags from where he'd placed them on the porch and then closing the door.

"I guess it can't hurt," she agreed, her fingers fiddling with the hem of her sweater. After they had said goodbye to Lucas, Brooke and Gracie, they had returned to their hotel room and gotten changed into their regular clothes before making the journey back to Tree Hill.

"So, what do you feel like doing now?" He asked, taking her hand in his and leading her into the living room.

"Uh, whatever you feel like doing is fine with me."

"Well, if you're hungry we could order in some takeout or--"

She laughed lightly. "Thanks, but I think I'll pass on that since food is the last thing I want right now. I'm still stuffed from everything we had at the restaurant."

"Me too. We could…uh…watch a DVD or something."

"Or we could talk?" she suggested shyly.

His lips curved up into a half smirk. "I was wanting to say that but I didn't want to push it, not after we agreed to put it on the backburner for today."

"Well technically it's tonight so…"

He chuckled at her reasoning. "You're right. What do you say we get changed first and get a bit more comfortable before we get started?"

Haley nodded her agreement. "That sounds good." Getting up from the seat she had taken beside him on the couch, she made her way out of the room and towards the stairs. She had only taken a few steps when she stopped and turned back to face him. "I, uh, I just wanted to say that today was really nice and I'm glad we had Lucas, Brooke and Gracie there with us."

"It was nice," he agreed, smiling up at her. "And I'm glad they were there too, even if Brooke did ream us out at first. By the way, what did you two talk about outside the restaurant?"

"Oh, she…uh…" She wasn't sure whether to tell him the truth and in the end decided against it. Instead, she replied, "She just wanted to say she was sorry about going off on me at the hotel. I think she felt bad about what she'd said."

"I'm glad. I know you two are close and I wouldn't want your friendship to be affected."

"Yeah, me either. Anyway, I won't be too long," she told him before leaving the room and running up the stairs.

"I'll be counting the minutes," he called out before laughing and he laughed harder when he heard her call out, telling him he was so cheesy.

Pushing himself off the couch, he made his way out of the room and picking up his own bag, he headed up the stairs to get changed too.

* * *

A short while later, Nathan and Haley were back downstairs, dressed in their sleeping attire consisting of a pair of purple plaid pajama pants and a plain purple tank top for her and a pair of dark blue sweats and a Knicks T-shirt for him. They were sitting at opposite ends of the couch but turned towards each other.

"You know, I feel like I'm assisting in the corruption of a minor," he told her gesturing to the beer bottle she was holding in her hands.

"Very funny," she quipped. "You might as well get all those jokes in because I'll be twenty-one before you know it. "

"That's true. I'd better be careful though since once I hit thirty you'll have cause to call me an old man."

"Now you know you shouldn't have told me that," she said giggling. A few moments later her laughter faded and the expression on her face turned serious. "Um, I thought I might give my parents a call tomorrow and…"

"You're going to tell them about the wedding over the phone?" he asked interrupting her.

She quickly shook her head. "No, I'm going to see if they're free for me to go up there this weekend so I can tell them face to face."

He tilted his head slightly to one side and asked, "Wait, what do you mean about you going up there? You don't want me to come with you?"

Biting her lip, she shrugged her shoulders. "Uh, I-I…"

Giving her hand a gentle squeeze, he said, "I'm more than happy to come with you." Seeing the disbelieving look on her face, he added, "Okay, maybe happy isn't the right word but it's only right I go with you and meet them. It's not going to look good if I leave you to tell them all by yourself."

"I know but…I just don't want it to go badly. I don't want them to say anything horrible to you," she confessed.

Cupping her cheek in his palm, he smiled as he spoke. "Hey, I'm a big boy, I can take it and it's bound to be a shock for them. Maybe you can prepare them when you speak to them on the phone and just let them know that you've got some news to tell them."

"Aww, you feeling scared all of a sudden?"

His smile widened at the teasing tone of her voice and instead of answering her verbally, he pressed his lips against hers in a soft kiss. Pulling back a brief moment later, he looked into her chocolate brown eyes and drank her in. He didn't know what it was but he loved the way her skin flushed a light pink whenever she was nervous or embarrassed and it just served as a reminder of how much younger than him she was.

The women he had been involved with in the past had all been around his own age and he couldn't help but be surprised at how much more comfortable he felt with her than he had ever really done with them. He had never confided in them and, to be honest, he had never actually wanted to, yet with Haley, it was a completely different story. It was almost as if he wanted her to know everything about him.

"Hey, where did you go?" Her quiet voice broke into his thoughts and bringing his other hand up to her face, he cupped it between his palms.

"Just thinking," he told her as he inched closer and rested his forehead against hers.

"Thinking what?" Haley marvelled at the way his eyes had darkened and she couldn't tear her eyes away from him.

"Thinking about how gorgeous you looked in that wedding dress earlier on and how gorgeous you look now."

"Nathan…" Her skin flushed a darker pink and she broke eye contact with him. A second later she felt his fingertips underneath her chin as he directed her gaze back to him.

"I'm serious," he said before quietly asking, "Can I kiss you again?"

Sucking her bottom lip into her mouth, she found herself nodding her head, silently giving him her consent and as his head tilted to one side and his mouth moved closer to hers, her eyes fluttered shut as she anxiously awaited the feel of his lips on hers.

She sighed into his mouth, losing herself in the kiss which at first started off gentle but didn't take long to turn intensely passionate. Tiny mewls and gasps emanated from both of them as they both poured all of their previously pent up attraction for each other into it.

Haley's fingers ran through his hair, her blunt nails raking across his scalp and down across the back of his neck. She smiled against his lips when she felt the little shiver that went through him at her action. It had been quite some time since she had last been kissed, but she couldn't recall ever feeling an ounce of what she was feeling at this very moment or having ever been kissed this way before, for that matter.

The boys back home had all been aware of who her older brothers were and she had always been seen as 'the good girl' of the James clan so that in itself had meant that she didn't get that many dates. The kisses she had received from the couple who did pluck up the courage to ask her out were nothing in comparison to what she was experiencing with Nathan.

When he broke the kiss several moments later, she expected him to draw back from her but he didn't. Instead, his lips kissed a path across her cheek to her ear where he sucked the lobe into his mouth and nibbled on it. An involuntary moan left her throat at the sensation while her fingers curled into his neck, holding him that little bit tighter to her. The feel of his late in the day stubble rubbing her skin was sending tingles shooting throughout her body and her moans grew louder when he began kissing and then sucking on her neck.

Somehow, Nathan managed to maneuver them so that he was lying down with Haley on top of him and it was his turn to moan when she straddled his waist in an attempt to get into a more comfortable position. With his hands on her hips, his fingers slipped under the hem of her tank top to stroke against her warm, baby soft skin.

He automatically tilted his head to one side when he felt her kiss his neck and he groaned when he felt her teeth graze against his skin and his hold on her hips tightened in a reactionary response. His breath was coming in short pants as her body moved on top of his and he forced himself to keep still and not grind a certain part of his anatomy against her centre. Her hair fell around them like a curtain and when the kiss ended, his eyes slowly opened to be met with her wide open ones looking back at him.

"Hi," he whispered, a smile curving his lips.

"Hi," she replied shyly.

"Are you okay?"

Haley nodded. "Uh huh. I…um…I…"

Nathan could sense her nervousness and when the earlier blush deepened further, a light-bulb suddenly went off in his head and he realised that she was most likely as innocent as she looked in certain other…things. A primal surge flowed through him at the mere thought that she was untouched and he took a much needed deep breath in order to calm himself down.

"C'mere," he told her a moment later, opening his arms and wrapping them around her back and laying down on top of him, she rested her head just under his chin. "I guess we got a bit carried away there, huh?"

He felt her smile against him at his question and he breathed a quiet sigh of relief. The last thing he wanted to do was make her feel embarrassed and uncomfortable.

"Yeah, I guess we did. I-I'm sorry th--"

"No, don't apologise. I wanted to kiss you and I'm not sorry so you shouldn't be either," he told her but when a thought suddenly occurred to him, he added, "Unless you didn't want me to kiss you."

"I did. Believe me, if I didn't want you to kiss me you'd know all about it," she joked. "I-I really wanted to kiss you."

Threading his fingers through her long wavy hair, he smirked. "Yeah?"

She giggled. "Yeah."

"Well, that's good to know. So, I guess now would probably be a good time to, uh, start talking about what happened between us this morning at the hotel."

Taking a deep breath, Haley shifted her position on top of him so that she was lying a bit more on her side and was propped up on one elbow, looking into his face. "Yeah, we should," she agreed.

"Do you want to go first?" He chuckled when she shook her head and lowered her gaze from his. "Okay, I'll start then." After a short pause, he began speaking. "I meant what I said this morning, Hales, I--"

"What did you call me?" she interrupted.

"Huh? I'm sorry, I don't know where that came from--"

Shaking her head again, she smiled. "You don't have to say sorry. It's just…I think that's the first time you've called me that. You usually just call me Haley. No one except for my family calls me Hales," she told him.

"Oh, well I won't call you that again if…"

"No! I-I want you to call me that… It, uh, it feels nice," she confessed in a quiet voice.

Taking her left hand in his, he ran his thumb over the wedding band he had placed on it earlier that day and he smiled. "Okay, but only if you're sure you don't mind me calling you by that name."

"I don't mind at all and besides, you're my family now. Well, in the eyes of the law anyway."

Leaning towards her, he covered her mouth with his and kissed her gently before pulling back after a short while. "Not just in the eyes of the law," he told her honestly. "As I was saying before, I meant what I said earlier about being attracted to you but it—it's sort of more than that. I like you, I've liked you since we first met thanks to Lucas wanting to help me out with my dilemma."

"I liked you too."

"Really? 'Cos I sort of got the impression you thought I was a bit of a jackass," he teased.

"Well, that wasn't exactly all your fault."

"True, I've got my mom and Brooke to thank for that one. Anyway, remember that day in the café when it was supposed to be our very first meeting?"

"The one for Deb's sake?"

"Yeah, well…I, uh…I didn't have to pretend about not being able to take my eyes off of you," he admitted.

Haley's mouth fell open at hearing that and she felt her body grow warm. While they had got on well pretty much from their first meeting, she had never imagined he had felt as attracted to her as she had to him.

"Are you serious?"

He nodded his head, his eyes trained on her face.

"Wow!"

"Was that a good wow or a bad one?"

Tracing her fingers over his jaw-line, she replied, "It was a good one. I, uh, kinda had trouble taking my eyes off you as well but I figured it was better for Deb to think you were more into me than I was to you. It sort of made sense given that all I'd heard from her and Brooke was how you were a bit of a…um…"

"Manwhore?" He suggested, a smirk tugging at his lips.

"Uh, something like that, yeah. If I'm being honest, it surprised me that she would talk about her own son that way, you know, in such a negative light."

Nathan shrugged. "It used to bother me but now, now I just shrug it off. My parents weren't what you could call normal which is why I spent so much time over at Luke's. If it wasn't for them, I'd have probably gone off the rails even more than I did."

Haley's heart went out to him and despite his words, she had a strong feeling that the situation still bothered him. Sliding her hand up his face, she cupped his cheek in her palm. "I'm sor--"

Her words were cut off by his lips crushing against hers and her eyes immediately fluttered shut as she got lost in his kiss once again. She moaned into his mouth when she felt his slightly calloused hand caressing the small of her back under her tank top and she pressed herself even closer to him.

"You feel so good," he whispered against her throat once the kiss had broken. The feel of her small hand under his T-shirt stroking his back felt amazing and he knew he could easily get addicted to her gentle touch.

"You do, too." They shared a long, lingering look and it was only broken when she lowered her eyes and focused on his chest. After a few minutes had passed, she glanced back up at him and shivered at the heated way he was looking at her. "W-What happens now?" she finally asked and she regarded him curiously when he smirked back at her.

"I was just going to ask you the same thing," Nathan told her and they both chuckled. Knowing that she most likely wanted him to go first, he suggested, "How about we just see what happens?"

"Okay… Um, how do you mean?"

"Well, I know we're married but we haven't exactly been on that many dates so we could just go out on dates and spend time together at home and do what most couples do." Seeing the surprised look on her face combined with the telltale rosy blush, he realised what that might have sounded like and he quickly added, "Oh, I…er…didn't mean _that_. Not that I don't want to or anything… Crap, I'm just making this sound all wrong."

Haley couldn't help giggling at him being all tongue-tied and cupping the back of his neck, she drew him in for a kiss. Pulling back from him a moment later, she looked into his clear blue eyes and smiled. "It's okay, I know what you meant. And the dating thing sounds nice, a little backwards considering we're married but still really nice." Pausing, she took a deep breath before she said what she knew needed to be brought out into the open.

"About the, uh, other stuff. You know, uh, sex." Her cheeks felt warm and she knew she was blushing profusely but she forced herself to talk. "It's not that I, uh, don't want t--"

"I know, Hales, and I'm not expecting anything. I mean, we haven't known each other that long and, like you said, everything has been so backwards with this whole thing… It wouldn't feel right to rush into something we're not ready for. I meant what I said before, Haley; I like you… Actually, that's not quite true."

"It isn't?" Her head lowered and she bit her bottom lip to stop her eyes from welling up. The feel of his thumb stroking her cheekbone had her looking up at him and she saw him watching her intently.

"I more than like you," he told her as he brushed his nose against hers in a soft Eskimo kiss. Their eyes locked on each other and they could both feel the electricity crackling around them as their mouths slowly drew closer until their lips were touching. The kiss was soft yet the underlying passion was evident and soon the only sounds that could be heard were those of harsh, panting breaths as the kiss spiralled out of control.

Nathan had to literally force himself to keep his hands on just her face or on the small slivers of skin that were revealed due to her tank top not quite meeting her pajama pants when his fingertips literally itched to touch other parts of her. He had meant what he had said to her about them not rushing into anything and he had a feeling that he would be indulging in a lot of cold showers while they got to know each other better.

When she began licking a hot stripe down his throat, his control nearly flew out of the window and he knew he had to stop things now before he let his arousal get the best of him.

"H-Hales… Oh god…" Her blunt fingernails scratching along his abs under his shirt almost threw him over the edge and had him saying 'Fuck it' but he managed to wrest control and force himself to say the words, "I-I think we should stop."

"Wha—Why?"

"Because if we carry on for much longer I don't think I'll be able to stop."

"May…maybe we shouldn't…stop, I mean." Glancing into his eyes, she saw his shock at her words and a part of her wished that she'd kept quiet. If was just that kissing him felt so good…and so right that she was scared she wouldn't feel that way again if they stopped now. That maybe he'd feel differently about her tomorrow.

"I don't think tonight's the right time," he told her seriously. "I don't want us to…"

"Have sex?"

He shook his head. "I don't want us to make love and for you to regret it afterwards. I want us to really get to know each other and see where it takes us. Who knows, you might find me to be the jackass that my mom and Brooke warned you about."

"No, I won't," she told him vehemently. "You're not that guy…not anymore anyway. And just so you know, I wouldn't regret being with you, not if it's half as good as the way you kiss," she teased.

"It's way better than that," he teased back, a full blown smirk fully in place and he laughed at the shocked expression on her face.

"You're terrible, you know that."

Nathan laughed louder. "I've been called worse than that, but not when it comes to a certain activity."

"Hmm, I think I'll have to rethink things now I know how big your ego is."

"That's not the only thing that's big," he quipped.

Haley's face was bright red as she slapped her hand across his mouth to stop him saying anything else. She quickly moved it though when he licked her palm.

"I love making you blush," he told her as he lowered his lips to hers and kissed her deeply.

"I've a feeling when these three years are up I won't be blushing as much as I do now."

"Somehow I don't think three years will be enough."

"What?" Her mouth dropped open as she waited for him to clarify that statement and confirm what she was already thinking he might have meant.

Looking into her beautiful brown eyes, he took a deep breath before he spoke. "If you're not bored of me by the time that contract ends, I was thinking you might want to…uh…stick around."

"Y-You might be bored of me by then, Nathan."

He shook his head. "I can't see that ever happening. I've never met anyone quite like you, Mrs Scott, and I doubt I will again." Seeing the sudden tears in her eyes, he wasn't sure what to think. "Hales, what's wrong? Have I said the wrong thing?"

Biting her lower lip, Haley shook her head. "No. It's just…that's the nicest thing anyone's ever said to me. And I…I feel the same. I don't think I'll ever meet anyone quite like you again either."

They each wore big smiles as they continued to look at each other and it wasn't long before they were kissing once more, their arms tightly wrapped around one another.

* * *

The next morning, Nathan was up bright and early. After spending an hour in his home gym, he had showered and gotten dressed and he was now in the kitchen preparing breakfast for himself and Haley.

He couldn't get over how amazing making out with her on the living room couch had been last night. Her soft kisses and warm, gentle hands had driven him wild and he was still surprised at the amount of control he had demonstrated. There was just something about her that made him want to look out for her and protect her and he loved how despite them not knowing each other for very long, that she seemed to feel the same way about him. She hadn't judged him based on his mother's and Brooke's words to her when she had first arrived in town and that meant a helluva lot to him. There weren't that many people who genuinely had his back but he knew for sure that she did.

When she had told him during their hot and heavy make-out session that maybe they shouldn't stop, he'd be lying if he said he hadn't considered it for a split-second because he had. But deep down he knew she wasn't ready to take such a large step and especially with someone she didn't know that well. He knew that if things continued the way they seemed to have been going, that the likelihood was they wouldn't be waiting for too long. And besides, in the meantime, they could have fun learning everything about each other which would make things even more perfect when they finally took that next step.

"Morning."

Hearing her voice behind him, Nathan turned around and smiled at his new bride. "Morning Hales, sleep well?"

"Uh huh," Haley replied as she picked up the jug of orange juice on the kitchen counter and poured herself a glass. "Have you been up long?"

"A while. I thought I'd make us breakfast so I hope you're hungry."

Smiling at him, she nodded. "I'm starving. Uh, should I go and get dressed first?" she asked, seeing that he was already showered and dressed.

"Nah, I think I can control myself around you while you're wearing your pajamas," he said giving her a wink.

She laughed out loud and said, "Right, like you controlled yourself last night on the couch."

Walking over to where she was standing, he wrapped his arms around her waist and lowering his head, he covered her mouth with his. "I didn't hear you complaining," he replied, lightly slapping her ass.

"True." Her arms twined around his neck and standing on her tiptoes, she pressed her lips against his and kissed him softly before tugging on his bottom lip. "So, what's for breakfast?"

"There's, uh, toast and scrambled eggs. I can make something else though if you want."

Haley shook her head. "No, that's more than fine, thank you."

Taking her hand in his, he led her around to the other side of the counter and moved a stool out for her to take a seat on which she did. Going over to the stove, he checked on the eggs before removing them from the heat and dividing them onto two plates.

As he worked, she couldn't take her eyes off of him and she smiled at the trouble he was going to for her. Her heart melted when she saw the vase with a single red rose in it just in front of where she was sitting. Leaning forward, she sniffed it's delicate fragrance and turning her head slightly, she noticed that Nathan was watching her.

"Do you like it?" His voice held an almost shy tone to it and she realised that doing something this sweet was probably out of character for him.

"I love it, Nathan. Thank you." When he had put down the plates he was carrying onto the counter and taken a seat beside her, she cupped his cheek in her palm and stroked over it with her thumb.

"You're welcome." Coughing to clear his throat, he then said, "C'mon, let's eat before it gets cold."

They were halfway through breakfast when the phone rang and getting up from his stool, Nathan went over to answer it.

"Hello… Oh, hey Mom. What's up?"

Haley felt her stomach flip flop at the knowledge that they would be breaking news of their marriage today to Deb and that it wouldn't be long before the entire town would get wind of it. It also reminded her that she needed to call her parents as well and at least try to prepare them for what she would be telling them when she next saw them. A part of her couldn't help hoping that they wouldn't be free the following weekend but she knew that was probably wishful thinking.

The last thing she wanted to do was hurt her parents and she knew without a doubt that they would be deeply hurt at her having gotten married without them and the rest of the family being present. Oh well, she'd made her bed and now she'd have to lie in it.

So lost in thought was she that she hadn't realised the phone conversation was over. It was only when Nathan took his seat beside her again that she was brought back to reality. "Is everything okay?" She asked a moment later after taking a sip of her juice.

"Uh yeah, she's invited us to dinner tonight and I figured that since we need to tell her the news sooner rather than later, I accepted. Is that okay?"

"Can I say no?" she teased.

Returning her smile, he nodded. "I could make an excuse for you if you'd rather not come. Maybe it's better if I tell her the news on my own anyway."

Covering his hand with hers, she said, "I was joking. Of course I'll come with you tonight. I can't say I'm looking forward to it but I wouldn't let you do this alone. If we're going to be convincing, then we need to stand together."

Nathan nodded. "Yeah, you're right." Leaning closer to her, he rested his forehead against hers. "You know, I don't think convincing people is going to be as big a problem as we first thought."

"You know what, I think you might just be right."

Closing the gap between them, Haley touched her lips to his and as they kissed, she silently prayed that dinner with her new mother-in-law would go well that night, more for Nathan's sake than for hers. The last thing she wanted was to be the cause of an even bigger rift between mother and son.


	14. Chapter Fourteen

**Author's Notes:** Thanks so much for all of your kind comments. I really appreciate it and I'm glad that you enjoyed the last chapter.

* * *

**Chapter Fourteen**

Knocking lightly on Haley's bedroom door, Nathan waited for her to tell him to come in which she did almost immediately. After turning the handle and pushing it open, he crossed the threshold and saw she was lying on her bed, her back resting up against the headboard.

"How did it go?" He asked as he sat down on the cushioned window seat.

"It wasn't too bad. I, uh, told them about you but I didn't tell them that we're married. I hated keeping it from them, but it's something that I need to do face to face," she said referring to the phone call she had just made to her parents.

"_We_ need to do face to face," he amended and was rewarded with a small smile.

"Right."

"So, are we going to see them this weekend?"

"Yeah. They unfortunately haven't got any other plans so this weekend it is. I thought we could drive up early Saturday morning… Of course, I'll need to change my shifts at the café which I'm sure Deb will love."

Seeing her in a panic, Nathan couldn't help but chuckle and getting up from his seat, he walked over and sat beside her on the bed. "It's gonna be okay, Hales."

She sighed loudly. "You really think so because I don't. My parents are going to be hurt and angry that I got married without breathing a word to them and your mom is seriously gonna freak that her son has married a mere waitress. She already made that perfectly clear and--"

"What? When?"

Haley realised her mistake and she tried to backtrack, but seeing the determined look on his face, she knew she couldn't lie. "After our first date… She managed to find me during my lunch break at the café the next day and well, let's just say she voiced her concerns about the two of us becoming involved with each other."

Nathan ran a hand through his hair as he took in what he had just been told. What the hell was wrong with his mother and her interfering in things that didn't concern her?

"I-I'm sorry, Nathan. I shouldn't have said anything."

"No, you were right to tell me but I don't understand why you didn't say anything before."

"I didn't want to cause any trouble plus I figured it was what she wanted. You know, me to run to you and for you to then confront her about it so she could make you see how stupid I was for misinterpreting what she'd said."

Giving her a small smile, he stood up and walked over to her and took a seat beside her on the bed. His hand covered and squeezed hers as he spoke. "You're probably right in thinking that but you still should've told me. There's no way I'd have believed her over you."

"But…she's your mother," she said with a surprised tone evident in her voice.

"And that's why I'd have believed you. Her and my dad were forever pulling this crap, trying to outdo each other while I was stuck in the middle and now he's gone, I'm pretty sure she'll be playing the same game with you, only you're too good to be drawn into it."

Turning her hand over, Haley interlaced her fingers with his. "I'm sorry you had to go through that when you were growing up and that you'll be going through it again now."

Nathan shook his head. "No, I won't be. I was thinking that we could make the move to Chicago after we've visited your parents and told them our news. What do you think?"

"That soon?"

"I know it seems fast but I need to get back to the office and plus, things are most likely going to be getting heated around here once news breaks of our nuptials. And anyway, I figured you might want to check out the schools in Chicago and see about applying for the new school year. It's your call though; if you'd prefer to stay here for another few weeks we can do that."

Looking into his face, her eyes met his and she knew without a doubt that she didn't want him to have to deal with Deb for longer than was necessary. The same also went for her and she knew that what he said about things getting heated was probably the understatement of the year, especially given the way news of their first date had spread around the town.

"I've never been to Chicago before," she told him with a smile and she giggled when he suddenly wrapped his arms around her and shifted her so she was sitting sideways on his lap.

"Are you sure?"

"Positive and besides, it was always the plan for me to move there with you after we were married so it's no big deal."

"Yeah, I know but I figured staying here for a couple of weeks at least would help us both get used to everything."

Kissing his cheek, she smiled against his skin. "Uh huh, but that was before things changed between us," she whispered shyly.

"There is that," he said as he turned his head and caught her lips with his, kissing her slowly.

Haley's fingers trailed over his cheek while his lips worked their magic on her. The slightest touch from him had her body humming and she couldn't seem to get enough. So lost in their kisses was she that it was only when her head touched her pillow that she realised he had moved them so that she was lying on her bed with him on top of her.

She moaned with disappointment when his lips left hers, but she cooed happily when she felt him begin to kiss her neck and she tilted her head to the side to give him greater access. Her fingers idly played with the hair at the nape of his neck while her other hand massaged over his T-shirt covered shoulder.

As Nathan continued kissing and sucking on the column of her neck, his fingers slipped under her sweatshirt and caressed the warm, soft skin of her tummy. He wanted so badly to strip her of the fabric that was covering her but he remembered his words to her last night and he intended to stick by them. When they took the next step in their relationship, he wanted her to be completely ready and he knew that right now she wasn't.

Moving back up to her mouth, he kissed her hotly before reluctantly drawing back and resting his forehead against hers as he caught his breath. "So, uh, what do you feel like doing to kill time before we face my mother?"

Haley blushed at his question since the only thing she wanted to do right then was carry on from where he'd left off. "Um, whatever you want to do is fine…" she said quietly, her eyes looking away from him.

The blush on her face gave him an idea of what she had in mind and he inwardly groaned. If only she knew what he wanted to do with her… "We could watch a movie or go for a walk on the beach?"

"A movie sounds good and I'll even let you choose."

Nathan chuckled. "Aww, honey, you're so good to me." Giving her another kiss, he pushed himself up off of her and then climbed off the bed. He held out his hand for her to take which she did a couple of seconds later and he gently pulled her up.

"What time are we due at Deb's?" she asked as they walked downstairs together, her hand securely clasped in his.

"Seven-thirty so I thought we'd leave around seven so we're there on time. The last thing we need is to be late and give her cause for complaint before she hears our news."

Haley nodded in agreement. "True."

Entering the living room, she took a seat at one end of the comfy couch and brought her knees up into herself.

"So, what movie do you feel like watching?" he asked, standing next to the unit where his DVD collection was housed.

"You pick," she told him before adding, "As long as it's not scary it's fine with me."

"Not a horror movie fan, then?"

"Not really. I'm kind of a wimp when it comes to blood and gore."

Running his finger along one of the shelves, he suggested, "How about Speed?"

"The one with Keanu Reeves?" Getting a nod from him, she smiled. "Definitely then."

"I take it you're a fan of his?"

"Hmm, you could say that," she teased. "I've lost count of the number of times I've seen that movie with my sisters. I remember we were so upset when we found out he wasn't doing the sequel to it."

Nathan laughed while he popped the disc into the player and hit the play button. Walking over to where she was, he sat down beside her and he couldn't help smiling when she scooted over towards him and snuggled against him. He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her even closer to him, dropping a kiss onto the top of her head. As the movie played, he found himself watching her more than watching the TV.

* * *

When the movie ended, he reluctantly released her from his embrace but she didn't move and glancing down at her, he noticed that somewhere during the last half hour, she had fallen asleep. He wished he didn't have to wake her up but he knew they needed to start getting ready so that they could leave in plenty of time for dinner with his mother. A big part of him wanted to ring her and cancel but he knew they needed to get this over and done with. If Brooke hadn't known that he was now a married man, maybe he could have gotten away with postponing it to another night, but she did know and so he was on borrowed time. While she had promised not to say anything and he trusted that she wouldn't, he couldn't help worrying that she would inadvertently let it slip.

Cupping Haley's cheek in his palm, he caressed her skin softly as he whispered her name into her ear. Thankfully, she didn't seem to be in too deep a sleep as she slowly started to wake up and her large brown eyes met his.

"Hey," she mumbled, feeling a little embarrassed at having fallen asleep on him.

"Hey back. Have a good nap?"

"Uh huh. I hate missing the end of movies…and especially that one."

"Don't worry, we can watch it again sometime. I'm sorry I had to wake you up but we should start getting ready for my mom's dinner and--"

"It's okay. To be honest, I'm surprised I could fall asleep what with me feeling so nervous about tonight."

Placing his fingers under her chin, he tilted her head back so her eyes were fixed on his again. "I want you to know that if she starts on you tonight, then we're out of there, okay? She can say what she wants to about me but there's no way I'm letting her do that to you."

Closing the gap between them, Haley pressed her lips to his and kissed him, suckling his bottom lip into her mouth just before she ended the kiss. "Thank you, Nathan, but I'm a big girl. I can take it."

Nathan nodded. "I know, but you shouldn't have to, especially not now that things have changed between us. It's more than you helping me out with a problem…a lot more." This time he was the one to lean in and he kissed her long and slow, savouring the familiar taste of her. Knowing that they needed to get moving, he finally ended the kiss and opening his eyes, he smiled at the dreamy look on her face combined with a subtle blush.

Standing up, he helped her off the couch and giving her a gentle slap on her ass, he directed her towards the stairs. "C'mon, the sooner we do this, the sooner we get it over with."

Reaching the staircase, Haley climbed the first two steps so she was level with his height before turning to face him. "Promise me something, Nathan."

"What's that?" Waiting for her to speak, he wrapped his arms around her waist and let his fingers caress just under her sweater.

She tried her best to ignore the feel of his slightly calloused fingers stroking over her skin and giving herself a mental shake, she replied, "Don't let her draw you into a fight. If she starts throwing accusations around, don't let her get to you. Please. I don't want to be the cause of even more trouble in your relationship with her."

He drew her in tighter to his body and rested his head on her shoulder. "You won't be, Hales. I'll do my best not to let her get to me but if she starts on you, then I'm sorry. I can't let that go. She can say whatever she wants to about me but I won't have her spouting all kinds of nasty shit about you… You don't deserve that."

Cupping his face between her hands, she leaned her head down and rested it against his. "You're a good guy, Nathan Scott."

Chuckling, he shook his head. "There are a helluva lot of people in this town that'd disagree with that."

"Well, in that case they're just stupid," she said, a smile playing on her lips. "And if they can't get past the fact that you've changed since high school and college, then that's their own fault."

"You're going to give me a big head," Nathan teased but her words had sent a warmth running through him and he knew that whatever happened between them, he couldn't lose her from his life.

* * *

At seven-fifteen, Nathan and Haley stood on his mother's doorstep but they hadn't yet rung the bell. On the short drive over, it had been easy to sense how nervous she was by the way she kept playing with her wedding ring and when they had pulled up at a traffic stop, he had covered her hand with his and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

Now though was a different story as he too felt the nerves eat away at him. He knew without a shadow of a doubt that his mother was going to create merry hell when they told her their news but he was more concerned about what she was likely to be saying to his wife rather to him.

"You ready?" he asked a moment later and after receiving a hesitant nod from her, he finally pressed his finger on the bell and heard the chimes ring out.

After a couple of minutes had passed, Deb Scott opened the door and greeted them both with a broad smile. Haley wasn't stupid and immediately noticed how the smile didn't quite meet the older woman's eyes and the butterflies that were already in flight in her stomach seemed to increase their speed and she suddenly felt nauseous.

"Nathan… Haley, come on in," the blonde said as she opened the door wider and allowed them to enter. Turning to her son, she hugged him before taking his arm and leading him towards the living room, leaving Haley to follow behind.

Nathan knew what she was doing and disentangling his arm from his mother's, he turned and smiled at Haley, extending his hand for her to take which she did. Facing his mother again, he smiled but made sure she saw the look of determination on his face which told her in no uncertain terms that he knew her game and wasn't going to play it.

Deb couldn't fail to see the way Nathan looked at his… girlfriend and the smile slipped from her face for a split second before she made sure it was back in place. While she had extended tonight's dinner invitation to both of them, she had been hoping that Haley wouldn't have attended and that she could have been left to speak to her son in private about the information she had uncovered. Oh well, maybe it was best that the brazen little hussy was there so that he could see exactly who and what he was getting himself involved with.

"Can I get either of you a drink before we sit down for dinner?" The older woman offered politely after they had sat down.

"Uh yeah, I'll have a beer if you've got any," Nathan replied before he turned to his wife and said, "Hales?"

"I'll just have a glass of water, please."

"Are you sure you wouldn't like anything stronger? Oh wait, I forgot, you're not twenty-one yet, are you?"

"No, she isn't," he interjected.

Haley didn't rise to the bait. "Water will be fine, thank you."

"Coming right up. Nathan, honey, why don't you take Haley into the dining room while I get our drinks and check on dinner."

"You didn't cook, did you?"

Deb laughed. "Of course not, I've learned my lesson by now. No, Karen was kind enough to prepare something for me to pop into the oven and it should be ready in a few minutes. Actually, once you've got Haley settled, could you come into the kitchen and give me a hand?"

"Sure." Nathan watched his mother leave the room and then leaning into Haley, he laid his head on her shoulder. "We should have cancelled," he whispered so only she could hear and he was relieved when she giggled, although he could hear the nervousness in her laugh.

"We're here now, Nathan, so we might as well get it over with. Oh, and you know she's going to be listing my bad points when she gets you alone in the kitchen."

Kissing along her jaw line, he smiled against her skin. "You don't have any bad points."

"Hmm, I'll remind you of that when we've lived together for longer than just a day."

Getting up from his seat, he took both of her hands in his and pulled her up. "C'mon, let's get this over with." That line seemed to be the theme of the day, he thought to himself.

After seating Haley at the dining table, Nathan went into the kitchen and watched his mother as she took a casserole dish out of the oven. "What exactly do you need my help with, Mom?"

"You could get our drinks while I serve the food," she told him. "Oh, she's not a vegetarian, is she?"

He shook his head. "No, she's not but it's a bit late asking that now, don't you think?"

"You're right and I'm sorry. I should have asked when we spoke this morning." Dishing up the food into serving bowls, she hesitated for a moment before finally asking, "Nathan, is there, uh, any way we can have a private talk this evening? There's something I really need to tell you."

Pausing from his task of pouring a tall glass of water, he turned to look at his mother. "Is it about Haley?"

"Y-Yes, it is. You need to know th--"

"Anything you need to say about Haley you can say in her presence. I'm not going to talk about her behind her back."

"Nathan…please. She isn't the sweet and innocent person you think she is."

"Just stop!" he said, his voice raised in anger before he lowered it again. "You don't know anything about her and--"

"That's where you're wrong," she told him as she picked up a grey coloured file from the countertop that he hadn't noticed was there. "Here." Deb held it out for him to take but he didn't move an inch except to shove his hands into his pockets.

"What's that?"

"I-I did it for you… I was concerned that you were making a mistake getting involved with someone so young."

"I'm an adult, Mom, and I don't need you running interference for me when it comes to women."

"She's not a woman…she's practically a child!"

"A child? She's twenty years old… She stopped being a child when she hit eighteen."

"And you're almost thirty… That's ten years, Nathan."

"I can count! Anyway, so what if I'm older than her? It's not a problem for me and I know it's not a problem for Haley so…"

"I'll bet it's not a problem for her."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Why don't you read the file and find out."

Nathan shook his head. "I don't need to read the file because I know everything about her."

"No, you only know what she's told you."

"Yeah, and I believe her."

Deb ran a perfectly manicured hand through her shoulder length hair. "Why are you so gullible when it comes to women?"

He laughed although not a trace of humour could be heard within it. "Gullible, huh? Just goes to show that you know absolutely nothing about me."

Trying a different tactic, she said, "Honey, I know she's young and pretty and seems very innocent but this file makes it clear that she's just another gold digger who's after your hard earned money."

"What exactly is that file and where did you get it?" he asked as he snatched it from her hand. Opening it up and flicking through it, he saw various photographs of Haley. There were a couple of her at the café, one of her at the local supermarket, another of her with him walking along the beach and the last one showed her entering _Temptation_, her former workplace.

"You hired someone to follow her?"

"I had to. It just seemed too convenient for her to have met you and for the two of you to then start dating."

"You're unbelievable. How is it _too convenient_ for her to have met me? No one knew I was in town when I walked into the café that day and she had no idea who I was before you introduced us." Okay, that was a lie but when he had met her just a couple of days before that 'official' first meeting, she genuinely hadn't known who he was.

Shaking her head from side to side, Deb said, "I think you were targeted."

This time when Nathan laughed, it was with disbelief at what he was hearing. "Are you kidding me? Targeted how?"

Taking a deep breath, she spoke. "I think you were the real reason behind Haley's appearance in Tree Hill. The private investigator I hired discovered that she had to drop out of college due to financial difficulties and that her parents were unable to help due to their own money problems. I think she maybe did some research on rich and successful businessmen and that your name was top of her list."

"Seriously Mom, can you hear yourself? I'm an architect not some hot shot tycoon who is constantly appearing in the news."

"I know but you are worth a lot of money, and plus there's the money you inherited from your father. Who's to say she didn't read about Dan's death and--"

"You're crazy," he said interrupting her.

"I won't be spoken to like that, Nathan. Show me some respect."

"No, not until you do the same for me. It's funny how it's okay for you to insult my intelligence yet I can't call you on being ridiculous."

"Read the file… It's all in there. Your girlfriend isn't the model of innocence she makes herself out to be."

"For your information, she isn't my--"

"Nathan, don't!"

Hearing Haley's voice behind him had him immediately turning to face her and he felt a sharp pull at his heart when he saw the tear stains on her face. She'd obviously heard every word that had passed between him and his mother and he inwardly cursed. Going over to her, he wrapped an arm around her waist while his other hand cupped the back of her head and he brought it to his chest.

Lowering his head so his mouth was by her ear, he whispered, "It's okay, Hales. Don't cry…please."

"Oh, here come the waterworks. See, this is what I'm talking about, Nathan," Deb said gesturing with her hands. "She's got you right where she wants you."

"Stop it!" Keeping his arms around Haley, he shifted their positions slightly so that he could face his mother. "You know nothing about my relationship with Haley so don't even try to assume you do. If you can't say--"

A glint of something caught the older woman's eye and she stared open-mouthed before choking out, "What's that?"

"What's what?"

"On your finger?"

Nathan felt Haley freeze in his arms and releasing a long breath, he looked his mother in the eye. "That's why we agreed to come to dinner tonight. We have some news for you."

"N-No! Please don't say what I think you're going to." She clasped her hands together almost in prayer.

"We got married yesterday." He watched the colour drain from her face and while he knew he should feel bad about it, he didn't. It gave him a weird sense of satisfaction to see the anger and shock etched on her features, especially after all the horrible things she had been saying.

"You're lying! Please tell me this is some sick joke you conjured up just to torment me."

"Right, because that's the only reason I'd get married… To piss you off."

Taking a deep breath, Haley moved away from the safety of Nathan's embrace and she turned to face the other woman. She felt sick at seeing the angry look in her eyes and she felt a shiver run through her.

Looking at the young girl standing before her, Deb's anger grew. "You told him you're pregnant, didn't you? I mean, why else would my son marry someone like you."

"That's enough," Nathan warned. "Haley isn't pregnant and, for your information, we didn't even sleep together before we got married."

She laughed pointedly. "Oh, so she used that old chestnut, did she? The 'I'm staying a virgin until my wedding night' excuse. Hmm, it looks like I may have underestimated you, Haley."

"It's not an excuse," she said quietly, forcing herself to keep her gaze locked with the other woman's.

"So Haley, I'm curious. Was Nathan's name at the top of your list of rich men to try and trap or have you tried this before?"

Ignoring his mother, Nathan cupped Haley's face between his palms and wiped away her tears with his thumbs. Resting his forehead against hers, he kissed her lips softly before whispering, "Take my keys and go wait in the car for me… I'll be out in a minute and we can go home."

"Nathan, I…"

"It'll be okay, I promise." He removed his keys from his pants pocket and handed them to her. They shared a long look before she finally nodded and made her way to the front door.

Once he'd heard the sound of the door closing, he stared at his mother with a look of pure anger. "How could you say all that to her?"

"How? Because I love you, Nathan. You're my son and I want what's best for you and, believe me, Haley James isn't what's best for you."

"It's Haley Scott, now," he corrected with a smirk.

"She doesn't deserve to carry that name."

"Whatever you say, _Mom_. The only person I care about is Haley and as far as I'm concerned, she's the best thing that's ever happened to me. Until you can accept her as my wife, I think it's best that you stay away from me and it goes without saying that I want you to stay away from Haley."

Deb stared at him incredulously, a hurt look etched across her face. "Y-You can't be serious. You're seriously going to choose _her_ over your own mother…your own flesh and blood?"

"Do you really need me to answer that?"

"You're going to regret turning your back on me, Nathan."

Ignoring her last remark, he said, "I need to get back to Chicago soon and Haley will obviously be coming with me so I'm not sure I'll see you before I go. I guess that'll be up to you and when you're ready to apologise to her."

He was about to leave but before he did so, he added, "Oh, and I'm sorry about dinner, but I've lost my appetite and I'm pretty sure Haley has as well." Giving her one last look, he turned and left.

Hearing the click of the front door closing behind him, Deb stood in the silent kitchen and felt a sudden urge to smash all of the dishes that were currently on the countertop. Taking several long, deep breaths, she forced herself to calm down but the rage within her refused to subside.

Knocking back the remainder of the glass of wine she had been drinking before they had arrived, she noticed the file she had earlier handed to Nathan lying on the corner of the worktop. Walking over to it, she flipped it open and finding the page she wanted, she picked it up and made her way towards the telephone whereupon she dialled the number that was typed on it.

She tapped her nails impatiently as she waited for someone to pick up and a few moments later, she heard a voice on the other end of the line.

Forcing herself to use her most polite tone, she asked, "Hello, can I please speak to Lydia James?"


	15. Chapter Fifteen

**Author's Notes:** Thanks so much for the amazing feedback you all left for the previous chapter. I'm so glad you enjoyed it and I hope you like the next one.

* * *

**Chapter Fifteen**

The drive home was made in silence as both Nathan and Haley struggled to make sense of what Deb had done.

One of his hands gripped the steering wheel while the other held his wife's hand, his thumb stroking back and forth over the back of it in an attempt to offer her some comfort. He could sense the hurt and…betrayal she was feeling and, not for the first time that night, he wished that he had gone to see his mother alone. That way he would have been able to shield Haley from discovering she had been followed and investigated.

Once inside the house, he watched her closely as he tried to come up with something to say to her but she beat him to it.

"I'm gonna go and take a bath and I, uh, think I'll have an early night." Her words were quiet and he could easily hear the suppressed tears in her voice.

"Haley, I--"

She gave him a watery smile and said, "I'm okay… I just need some sleep. I'll see you in the morning."

Nathan watched her begin to climb the stairs and again, he tried to think of something to say but he came up empty. The only thing he kept coming up with was to ask if she was hungry, but he knew she wouldn't have an appetite so he refrained from asking the question. He just hoped that she would come and talk to him when she was ready. Heading into the kitchen, he grabbed a bag of potato chips from one of the cupboards before getting a beer out of the fridge and then making his way into the living room. Flicking on the TV, he settled down on the couch and found a basketball game playing on ESPN. His mind couldn't focus on it though as all he could see before his eyes was Haley's tearstained face after having heard what his mother had done.

* * *

Instead of taking a bath, Haley decided on taking a shower knowing that she could cry without fear of Nathan hearing her due to the sound of the powerful water spray drowning her out.

Despite the heat of the water, she still shivered and knew it was a direct consequence of the words she had heard fall from Deb's lips. She couldn't believe that the other woman distrusted her that much that she would have hired an investigator to look into her background. While she could understand her having her son's best interests at heart, it still hurt that a woman she regarded somewhat of a friend could do that to her.

Finally getting out of the shower, she snagged the towel off of the heating bar and wrapped it around herself. After wiping away the steam from the mirror, she saw her reflection but she looked right through it; instead seeing the angry, twisted scowl on Deb's face as she angrily confessed to what she had done and showing no regret or remorse for it.

Haley squeezed her eyes shut, determined not to cry again and let the other woman have the satisfaction of knowing how much she had hurt her. She splashed her face with some cold water and after making sure her towel was nice and secure, she opened the door to the bathroom and made her way to her bedroom.

Quickly drying off and slipping into a pair of pale blue sleep shorts and an oversized T-shirt, she pulled back the covers on her bed and climbed in, hugging one of the extra pillows to her chest. Lying there in the dark, her mind replayed what had happened just a short while ago and once again, she felt her eyes fill with tears. She bit her lip and hoped that sleep would come soon so she could forget everything…just for a little while.

* * *

Just after midnight, Nathan was lying in bed propped up against his pillows, the covers pooled at his waist while he read over some papers that had been faxed over to him earlier that day. He just happened to glance up and he saw Haley standing in the doorway and he felt a sharp stab in his chest as he took in the sad look on her face.

"Hey," he said quietly, breaking the silence. "Can't sleep, huh?"

Haley shook her head. "No." She shifted from foot to foot before whispering, "Um…do you think I could, uh, sleep in here…with you? I-I don't want to be by myself."

"Of course you can," he told her without a moment's hesitation. After placing his file on the nightstand, he pulled the covers back in invitation and he watched her come towards him.

Just before she climbed in, she asked, "I'm not disturbing you or anything, am I? I noticed you were reading and…"

"It's nothing that can't wait until morning," he told her, giving her a smile. "How are you feeling?"

Getting into bed, she snuggled down and turned onto her side so she was facing him. "I'm okay… I was hoping I could go to sleep and forget everything but I've just been lying there with it all going around and around in my head." She paused for a moment before continuing.

"I-I can't believe she had me investigated, particularly as we'd only gone on one date before she did it. Maybe I could understand it if she'd done it after we'd told her we were married."

Nathan shook his head. "Even if that had been the case, it would've still been wrong. She had no right to do that and I don't think I can forgive her for it."

She placed her hand on his forearm. "Nathan, she's your mom and…she probably thought she was doing the right thing."

Reaching over to the nightstand, he switched off the lamp and then shifted down so he too was lying on his side facing her. He rested his head in his hand while the fingers of his other one intertwined with hers. "You always try to see the good in everyone."

"I can't help it," she said shyly before adding, "I know what she did was wrong and I'm not trying to justify it, but--"

"There is no justification for what she did. You know, I thought now that I was an adult she wouldn't be able to get to me anymore, but I was wrong."

Haley's hand came up to gently caress his face. "Nathan…" Her voice trailed off as she tried to think of something to say but nothing came to mind. His parents had really done a number on him and it was a wonder he'd turned into the man she had come to know.

"It's okay." He forced himself to smile at her and he had a feeling it looked as fake as it felt. "Hey, can I ask you a question?"

"Of course you can. What is it?"

"Uh, one of the photos in...the file my mom showed me…"

"Yeah?" she prompted a moment later when he still hadn't voiced his question.

"It showed you walking into _Temptation_ but you'd already quit working there by the time my mom knew about our first date so…"

"You wanna know what I was doing back there?"

Nathan nodded. "Yeah."

Smiling at him, she replied, "I was picking up my final pay check. When I handed in my resignation they hadn't yet sorted it out and they asked me to come back. What with one thing and another I didn't get around to going back for a few days and by that time Deb's investigator must've already been following me. It shows how observant I am, huh, that I didn't notice some guy tailing me."

"I'm sure she hired the best company she could find so don't even think that," he told her, his fingers finding hers again and squeezing them gently.

Their eyes locked for a long moment before Haley felt her face grow hot and she knew she was blushing…as per usual. Glancing into his face again a few seconds later, she couldn't fail to notice how his eyes had suddenly darkened and she felt a shiver run through her.

"You okay?" he whispered, having felt her body tremble against his. He didn't know if she was aware of the fact that her toes were running up and down his calf but he wasn't going to say anything in case she stopped doing it.

"I'm fine," she whispered back and she watched his lips curve upwards into the smirk she had come to know and love.

"Yeah…you sure are."

She giggled. "Nathannnn." She went to playfully punch his shoulder but he caught her fist in his hand and used it to pull her even closer to his body before he shifted so he was lying on top of her.

His head seemed to move almost in slow motion but when his lips finally met hers, they both released a sigh of relief which was also tinged with the pleasure they instantly felt.

Haley parted her lips wider, accepting his questing tongue into her mouth and feeling it glide along hers while her arms slid up and around his neck. She could feel the heat from his bare chest through the thin fabric of her sleep shirt and a part of her wanted it gone so that she could feel his skin against hers with no barriers. One of her hands cupped the back of his head while the other roamed up and down his back and she couldn't help but love the feel of his strong muscles sliding around beneath his soft skin.

Breaking the kiss several moments later, Nathan buried his face in the nook between her neck and shoulder and breathed in the scent of her skin as well as that from her hair, a few strands of which were tickling his face. He sucked in a lungful of air as he fought to get his breathing under control, but the feel of her delicate fingers stroking up and down his back wasn't helping matters. In that moment, he'd give anything to strip her shirt and shorts off of her and show her just how much he wanted her but he knew he couldn't…not yet, and definitely not tonight. Not after what his mother had revealed to them. He would be taking advantage of her and that was the last thing he wanted to do.

"Nathan? Are you okay?"

Her voice broke into his thoughts and pushing himself up onto his forearms, he gazed down into her face and gave her what he hoped was a reassuring smile. "Yeah, I'm fine." He made to move off of her but she shook her head.

"Don't…don't go," Haley whispered shyly.

Moving onto his side, he cupped her cheek. "I'm not going anywhere," He paused for a few seconds before adding, "It's been a long night so maybe we should get some sleep, huh?"

"I-If that's what you want." For some reason, she suddenly felt the need to cry and she turned her head away, so he couldn't see her eyes.

Nathan sensed a change in her and couldn't fail to notice her turning away from him. "Hales, what's wrong?"

Turning onto her side so her back was to him, she shook her head. "N-Nothing… I'm gonna go to sleep now."

"Hey, c'mere." Wrapping an arm around her waist, he pulled her back towards him so her back was pressed against his front and leaning forward, he rested his chin on her shoulder. His fingers slipped under her shirt and he lightly caressed the soft, downy skin of her stomach.

Haley closed her eyes as she felt his fingers touching her bare skin and she tried to suppress the tremor that ran through her body without success. She held her breath as she silently willed him to slide his hand higher even though she knew he wouldn't. While she liked the fact he wanted to take things slowly, another part of her was desperate to take things further…to finally experience more than just a hot and heavy make-out session with him but she didn't know how to vocalise her wishes. She knew her age was most likely a factor in his reluctance and while, yeah, she was pretty innocent in certain things, especially in comparison to his other…conquests, she wasn't a child and didn't want to be treated as such.

Shifting her body further against his, she immediately became aware of a certain part of his anatomy pressing into her and she bit her lip to stop herself from moaning. The fact that she had that effect on him gave her a warm feeling deep inside and she couldn't help but push back against him.

Squeezing his eyes shut, Nathan tried as best he could to calm himself down but Haley's movements weren't exactly helping the situation. His hand splayed on her stomach and he couldn't resist sliding it upwards, stopping when he came into contact with the underside of her breasts.

"Nathan…" she murmured, her head falling back a little which meant the side of her face now rested alongside his. When his hand hadn't moved from its position a few minutes later, she placed her hand on top of it and moved it so he was now cupping her breast.

"Haley, I…"

"Please," she said interrupting whatever he had been about to say. Turning her head to the side so she could look at him better, she smiled. "Please."

Rolling her onto her back, his body covered hers and he looked deep into her eyes for a long moment, making sure this was what she wanted and when he was satisfied that it was, his lips captured hers in a long and deeply intense kiss.

Nathan's hands wandered all over her upper body beneath her shirt and he marvelled at the soft, silky skin he was touching. He smiled against her mouth when she moaned after he had tugged on her erect nipples, so he repeated the action. He kissed a path from her lips down to her throat and lower still to her neck whereupon he sucked a patch of skin into his mouth, determined to make the mark he had already created on her skin from an earlier make-out session even more pronounced.

For her part, Haley's fingers threaded through his thick hair before one hand moved lower and stroked up and down his back before reaching the waistband of his boxers. She let her fingers graze just underneath but she was too nervous to do anything more than that and it was in that split-second that she realised she still wasn't ready to completely be with him.

Having literally felt her withdraw from him, Nathan pushed himself up onto his forearms and looked down into her face, noticing the way her teeth were biting her bottom lip. "Hales?"

"I'm sorry…I-I can't…" She glanced away from him, not wanting to see the disappointment in his eyes.

"Hey, it's okay." Cupping her cheek, he directed her gaze back at him and he gave her a reassuring smile. "You probably won't believe me, but I wasn't going to let us go all the way tonight. I figured I'd be taking advantage of you after what happened at my mom's place."

Forcing herself to keep looking into his eyes, she knew he was telling the truth. "You wouldn't have been taking advantage of me, Nathan."

"Maybe not but it would've felt like it. When it happens, I want it to be something that you're completely ready for… Heck, something I'm completely ready for."

Tilting her head to one side, Haley regarded him curiously. "What do you mean? You know, about you being ready, too."

He took a deep breath before speaking. "My relationship with you is…it's different to anything I've had before. I told you when we first met that I'd never intended on getting married and I meant that. The women I've associated with in the past were definitely not marriage material and that's the reason I was with them. But from the moment I met you… I don't know, something just clicked and…"

"And what?" she whispered.

"And it felt right," he confessed. "I usually keep things so private and I don't give much of myself away but with you…I like having you know about me, about my life. I never feel like you're judging me or that you think less of me."

"That's because I don't, Nathan. When I first moved here and your mom and Brooke would be telling me stories about you, for some strange reason I never took any notice of them, except that I remember thinking it was weird that your own mother and your cousin-in-law would be telling a total stranger these negative things about you."

He smiled at her. "I remember you saying that not long after we met." Lowering his head, he nuzzled his nose against hers before kissing her lips softly. "How about we try and get some sleep?"

Bringing her hand up, Haley trailed her fingers along his cheek. "Okay. Uh, are you sure you don't mind about us not…you know? 'Cos I could go back and sleep in my room if yo--"

"I'm positive, Hales," he said interrupting her. "We've got all the time in the world and it'll be nice to just get to know each other more than we already do. This thing between us… I just don't want to spoil it."

Smiling back at him, she said, "Me either."

"Good." After one more kiss, Nathan rolled onto his back and wrapping an arm around her, he pulled her in closer to his body so that her head rested on his shoulder. The feel of her fingers tracing patterns on his bare chest was lulling him to sleep and tilting his head to the side, he rested it against hers.

"Nathan?"

"Hmm?"

"What do you think your mom might do next?"

His arm, which was still wrapped around her, pulled her in tighter and he squeezed her gently. "Let's talk about it tomorrow, okay? Just try and forget what happened tonight and get some sleep. I don't want to give her the satisfaction of us losing sleep over her."

Kissing his jaw, Haley snuggled into him again and she let the thumping beat of his heart beneath her hand coax her to sleep, doing her best to do what Nathan had suggested and forget what Deb had done, at least until tomorrow.

* * *

Nathan was the first to awaken and checking the alarm clock on his nightstand, he was surprised to see that it was almost eleven. Although given their late night, maybe it wasn't that surprising.

Glancing down, he saw that sometime during the night Haley had shifted slightly and that instead of her head resting on his shoulder, it was now on his chest. His fingers brushed the hair out of her face and his smile grew wider when she burrowed further into him. The last thing he wanted to do was wake her up but he knew she must be starving since she hadn't eaten anything since yesterday afternoon.

As carefully as he could, Nathan managed to slide out from underneath her without waking her up and after throwing on a T-shirt, he went into his adjacent bathroom to use the facilities. A few minutes later, he was downstairs preparing a breakfast tray for the both of them so that they could eat together before they had to deal with the issue of his mother.

Entering his bedroom a short while later, he saw that his bed was empty and he frowned until he saw that the door to his bathroom was closed and he could hear the sounds of running water. Placing the tray on his dresser, he waited for her to come out which she did not long after.

"Morning," he said, smiling at her and taking in her tousled hair which, he noticed, made her look very sexy. "Did you sleep okay?"

"Uh huh. You make a really comfy pillow," Haley teased. "Where did you disappear to?"

Picking up the tray, he showed her what he had prepared. "I made us breakfast. I figured you'd be hungry considering you didn't have any dinner last night. Hop back into bed and we can get started."

Haley's heart melted at his kind gesture and she returned his smile. Getting back into bed, she sat up against the headboard, her pillows propping her up and she took the tray off of him as he took a seat on the bed and faced her.

"This looks great," she told him before popping a strawberry into her mouth. "Thank you."

"You're welcome. I guess it's also my way of apologising to you."

"Apologising for what?"

Swallowing his sip of orange juice, he replied, "I shouldn't have taken you with me last night. I-I knew she wouldn't take it well but…"

Placing her hand over his, she lightly squeezed it. "You have nothing to apologise for, Nathan. And anyway, she told you about having me investigated before you even mentioned us having gotten married."

"Yeah, I know but I still feel awful about it."

"Well don't because it's not your fault."

Nathan shook his head. "How can you say that? If it wasn't for me you wouldn't be involved in all of this and--"

"And we'd never have met," she pointed out. Her hand moved up to his face and cupped his cheek and she smiled when he leaned into her touch. "As weird as our situation is, I wouldn't change a thing because…" She trailed off, feeling self-conscious at what she wanted to reveal to him even though she had a strong sense that he felt the same.

"Because what?"

"Because meeting you has been the best thing that's ever happened to me." Her eyes flickered between his and the comforter as she waited to hear his response.

Nathan's hand covered hers which was still on his face and interlacing their fingers, he rubbed his thumb back and forth across the back of her hand. "The same goes for me, Hales." Leaning forward, he kissed her mouth softly before retreating a moment later. "I just hate that I'm dragging you into this mess with my mom."

"Hey, I knew what I was getting into when I signed up to help you and, okay, maybe I wasn't exactly expecting this kind of reaction from her, but I knew it wasn't going to be easy."

"I wasn't expecting her to freak out so much either about the two of us being together," he told her.

Haley paused briefly before speaking again. "I know we still have lots to learn about each other and stuff, but there's something I need to say."

Nodding, he said, "Okay, what is it?"

"I need you to understand that I can take care of myself. I love that you want to protect me and stuff, but…"

"But you don't need me to speak up for you?" he guessed.

Yeah," she replied quietly. "Tonight pretty much left me speechless but once you get to know me better, you'll see just how feisty I can be. Growing up the youngest in my family you needed to be that way."

Kissing her lips once more, he leaned his forehead against hers and smirked. "I'll look forward to seeing your feistier side."

Haley blushed but she didn't pull away from him. "Don't worry, I'm sure it'll surface before too long.

They finished their breakfast while chatting about this and that, making sure to avoid a certain topic until they felt better prepared for it.

A long while later, after having both gotten showered and dressed, they were sitting in the living room at different ends of the couch sipping their coffees while reading different sections of the newspaper. Haley's feet were in Nathan's lap and one of his hands was absentmindedly rubbing them in turn while he read the sports pages.

The ringing of the doorbell broke the silence and they both looked at each other. Seeing the nervousness on his wife's face, Nathan knew just who it was she thought might be at the door. Giving her a smile, he squeezed her foot lightly before raising her legs up and getting up from his seat.

"I'll get it," he told her, bending down to press a kiss to the top of her head.

Opening the front door, he saw an unfamiliar older couple standing on the doorstep and, smiling at them politely, he greeted them and asked, "Can I help you?"

Neither of them returned his smile and it was the woman who spoke first. "We're looking for Haley James. We understand this is her new address and--"

Nathan wondered why the woman had stopped talking and looking behind him, he saw Haley standing there with a shocked expression written all over her face.

"Mom... Dad…"

In that second, Nathan knew just how much further his own mother had gone.


	16. Chapter Sixteen

**Author's Notes:** Thank you so much for all of the wonderful reviews you posted for the last chapter. I'm really happy you enjoyed it and I hope you like this next one.

* * *

**Chapter Sixteen**

Haley paced back and forth in the kitchen while she waited for the kettle to boil, her hands tightly gripping the hem of her sweater as she did so. Her stomach was tied in knots and she couldn't remember a time when she had felt more nauseous.

"Hales, you need to calm down," Nathan said using a quiet voice, both in an attempt to calm her down but also so the older couple currently sitting in his living room wouldn't overhear despite the door being closed.

"Calm down? How can I calm down, Nathan? These are two people I never expected to see suddenly standing on your doorstep. I just don't understand how--"

"My mother must've called them," he interrupted before continuing, "I mean, how else would they know you would be here?"

Suddenly it all clicked into place for her and she stared back at her husband open-mouthed. "She called them."

"She must have done. You hadn't told them you'd moved out of your apartment, right?"

Nodding her head, Haley replied, "Right. I-I kept putting it off. I knew I had to tell them but I just… I just didn't know how I was going to explain that not only had I moved in with a guy I didn't know that well, but that I'd married him. And all without talking to them about it first. I figured I'd tell them everything when we went up there at the weekend."

Walking over to her, Nathan wrapped his arms around and hugged her to him, his fingers idly stroking through her hair. "I'm so sorry I've gotten you into all of this and--"

Bringing a hand up to his face, she covered his lips with her fingers. "Don't apologise, Nathan. I know certain aspects of this are a real mess but I'm not sorry I married you. These past couple of months or so have been…"

"I know," he said, interrupting her once again, his lips curved up in a genuine smile. "I'm not sorry I married you either; I'm just sorry my Mom has started channelling my Dad. This is the sort of crap he would've done if things had turned out differently."

Raising herself up onto her toes, Haley kissed his lips softly before drawing back and smiling up at him, a determined look etched upon her face. "Well, we're not going to let her win. She probably thinks my parents will drag me back home and that they'll force us to annul the marriage and that'll be the end of it."

"Would they do that?" Nathan enquired as his fingers slipped beneath her sweater and traced lazy circles on her lower back.

"No. I know they're not going to be happy with us, me more than you to be fair, but they'll respect whatever decisions I make. And anyway, I'm over eighteen so even if they wanted to force me to go back home, they couldn't."

Nathan watched her face carefully and he couldn't help still feeling guilty for getting her involved in this whole situation. Her parents had a right to feel angry and hurt and he knew things weren't going to be easy at all. Here he was, a grown man of almost thirty years old, marrying a girl who hadn't yet turned twenty-one. If he was in their shoes, he had a feeling he'd be feeling the same way as them.

"Nathan?"

"Sorry. Are you absolutely sure you want to stay with me? I'd understand if you wanted out," he told her. He held his breath as he waited for her response.

"Do you want me to back out?"

"What? No, no, I don't. I just don't want you to feel that you have to stay with me if it's not what you really want to do."

Biting her lip, she slowly brought her hands up to cup his face between her palms and she looked him straight in the eye. "I want to stay with you, Nathan. I-I thought we'd decided that this was a little more than just a business deal now but if…"

Her words were cut off by his lips urgently pressing against hers as he kissed her hard and deep, his tongue slipping into her mouth to tangle with hers. One of his hands spanned her back under her top while the fingers of the other one ran through her long, thick tresses.

Breaking the kiss several minutes later, Nathan rested his forehead against hers and he smiled warmly at her. "It is more than just a business deal," he told her honestly. "I meant everything I said to you when we talked about this before, Hales."

"Good, I meant everything I said to you, too."

They kept smiling at each other before Haley broke the comfortable silence between them.

"What do you think Deb's told them?"

"I have no idea except it probably isn't good. She could have gone one of two ways in that she's either put me down to them, telling them about my philandering ways all through school and college or she's made you out to be a little gold-digger."

She thought about what he'd said for a moment before speaking. "My guess is that she wants them on side to help her break us up so it's more likely she's opted for badmouthing you to them. She's going to know that bitching to them about their own daughter isn't going to get them on side so…"

"Yeah, you're probably right. So, I'm going to have to be on my best behaviour, huh?"

Haley giggled. "When aren't you, honey?"

The couple exchanged another kiss, this time being a little more leisurely now that they knew where they both stood with one another.

"C'mon, let's finish making the coffee and get back out there before they think we've made our escape out the back door," he said teasingly.

"You think we'd get away with it?" she teased back.

"Somehow, I think we'd be hunted down and unfortunately there aren't too many places to hide in this town. Just one question though, your dad's not a violent man, is he?"

Haley giggled. "Aww, honey, where would be the fun if I told you that now?"

Beneath the joking banter, they both felt anxious at the conversation they knew they would be having in just a few minutes time but they also knew that as long as they stuck together, there was a chance that things wouldn't turn out as bad as they feared.

Once the tray containing the cups of coffee together with a plate of cookies was assembled, Nathan picked it up as Haley opened the kitchen door.

"You ready?" he asked and although she nodded her head in reply, he could clearly see how scared she was. Giving her one last kiss, he picked up the tray and followed her as she made her way into the living room, a silent vow running through his head. There was no way he was letting his mother get away with what she had done this time.

* * *

"How long does it take to make coffee?" Jimmy James complained to his wife as his eyes roamed around the living room, taking in the expensive décor.

Lydia sighed. "I'm sure they'll be back in a few minutes." Shifting on her seat, she faced her husband and warned, "Let's just give Haley a chance to explain things to us in her own words. I'm sure there's a very good reason wh--"

"A good reason why she got married without telling us first? We didn't even know she was seeing anybody, Lyd, and I just don't understand why she hasn't talked to us about any of this. If it wasn't for that phone call we got last night we'd still be in the dark, you know that."

"I know but I also know our daughter and I'm sure she had her reasons."

Jimmy slowly shook his head. "I thought I knew her but after this… I just don't know what to think." Pausing for a moment, he then added, "You don't think she's in some sort of trouble?"

Lydia's eyes widened. "You mean pregnant?"

"Damn! I hadn't even considered that. I meant some other form of trouble, like she was forced into marrying him or something."

"Forced by who? This isn't the dark ages and one thing I know for sure, Haley doesn't do anything she doesn't want to do."

"So it's probably the pregnancy thing, then. At least this guy had the decency to marry her instead of taking off like so many guys seem to do these days."

Suddenly hearing approaching footsteps, she whispered harshly, "Whatever it is, let her tell us herself, okay? Don't go jumping the gun and accusing her or Nathan of doing something. We need her to know she can talk to us about anything that's bothering her."

This time it was Jimmy who sighed. "Fine, I won't say a word for the moment but I don't like this, I don't like it at all."

The older couple watched as their daughter entered the living room followed by their new son-in-law carrying a tray, both of them wearing what could only be described as uncertain looks on their faces.

"Uh, sorry about the wait," Haley said. "We brought some cookies but I could make us something to eat if you--"

"Haley, why don't you and Nathan take a seat so you can start telling us how it is that you've gotten married without telling your own family?"

While the older woman was trying to stay calm, inwardly she couldn't believe that her youngest child, her baby, had been so secretive about all of this. Having her daughter living in Tree Hill was the first time they had been separated from her what with her having lived at home during the time she attended college.

Nodding her head, Haley finished handing out the cups to her parents before taking Nathan's hand and squeezing it, and then leading him over to the opposite couch. Once they were both seated, she looked at her parents and opened her mouth to speak but nothing came out. She tried a couple more times but still the words wouldn't come. When her father finally broke the silence and spoke, her mouth dropped open with shock at his first question.

"Are you pregnant? Is that why you got married so fast and without a word to your own family?"

"Jimmy!" His wife exclaimed. "What did I tell you?"

"Daddy, no! I'm not pregnant."

"Well, that's something at least."

"We didn't get married because we had to. We got married because it was what we both wanted."

"But why so fast?" Lydia asked before taking a sip of her coffee. "We didn't even know you'd met anyone."

"I… It felt right, Mom." Turning her head, she smiled at Nathan and then faced her parents again. "I met Nathan when he came home to Tree Hill to visit his family and we just…clicked. We pretty much started dating straightaway and when he proposed… I don't know, it just felt right."

"You keep saying that but I still don't understand why you didn't tell us about it. Your own parents," Jimmy stated. All he wanted was to make some sense of why his daughter felt the need to keep all of this from those closest to her.

"Because you would have tried to stop it from happening," Haley told him. "I know up until a few months ago I was living at home, but it doesn't mean I can't make my own decisions."

"I never said you couldn't."

"No, I know but you and Mom both thought I was making a mistake in moving here. You didn't seem to understand how hard it was for me living at home with everyone knowing our business, knowing that I couldn't afford to stay at school."

"So, you're saying you were embarrassed of us?"

Haley shook her head. "No," she replied vehemently. "I could never be embarrassed of you or of our family. I just… I needed to get away, be someplace else. You know how bad things got with some of the people I considered friends and--"

"I know," Jimmy said quietly. He would never understand how people he had considered good friends of his daughter's could ridicule her just for the simple fact that he had been laid off work along with several of his colleagues. Seeing her putting a brave face on things had weighed heavily upon his heart and although he hadn't wanted her to leave home, he knew that it was probably for the best, for a short while at least.

"Mr and Mrs James, I know you probably won't believe me, but--"

"I wondered when you were going to pipe up," the older man said after Nathan had started speaking.

"Daddy!" Haley exclaimed at the same time as her mother shouted, "Jimmy!"

Nathan nervously ran his hand through his hair. This was the one of the main reasons he never got too involved with anyone. Parents. Seriously, who needed the hassle.

"C'mon then, what were you saying?" Jimmy prompted before taking a long drink of his coffee.

"We were coming up to see you and Mrs James this weekend to talk to you about what we'd done."

"Oh, okay. Well, I guess that makes everything all right," he said sarcastically. "What I'd like to know is why you felt the need to rush into getting married in the first place? From what we've heard, you don't exactly _do_ relationships so we're a little confused as to why you've suddenly changed your tune and gotten married."

Picking up his own coffee cup, Nathan took a big sip of the now tepid liquid. God, what he wouldn't give for a glass of scotch right now or even just a beer. Coffee wasn't really doing it for him.

Jimmy impatiently waited for the other man to speak and as he did so, he couldn't fail to notice how tense he was. However, as soon as his daughter placed her hand on his knee, giving it a squeeze, he saw him instantly relax and, in that moment, he realised just how comfortable they were with each other. Oh, he still wasn't happy with the situation but for the first time since they had entered the house, he wasn't feeling as uptight as he had initially.

"I'm guessing it was my mother who called you, am I right?"

Lydia nodded. "Yes. She felt we had a right to know that Haley had gotten married."

"She's right, you do have a right to know but Haley and I wanted to be the ones to tell you. That's why we were coming up to see you at the weekend. Before you say anything, I know we should have told you before the wedding but we didn't and I take full responsibility for that."

"Nathan…"

"No, it's okay, Haley," he said turning to look at her before his gaze returned to the older couple sitting opposite them. "When my Mom called you, she wasn't doing it out of the kindness of her heart. She knew we were planning on coming to tell you in person but after I had an argument with her last night when she…" Nathan trailed off, not wanting them to know how far his mother had gone in attacking their daughter.

"When she what?" Lydia prompted when he didn't say anything.

"Nothing. It was a pretty bad argument and she must've called you out of spite more than anything."

"You always fight with your mother?" Jimmy enquired, wondering just who Haley had gotten herself involved with.

"You want the truth? Yes, pretty much. I never had the best relationship with my parents and it's mainly due to having witnessed their destructive behaviour towards each other that had me swearing off marriage from an early age." He paused for a moment before continuing. "My mother was right when she said I didn't do relationships but I'll bet she didn't tell you that she has a part to play in that."

"What changed? I mean, regarding your change of heart towards marriage."

Nathan couldn't help smiling at his mother-in-law's question. "I met your daughter."

Lydia looked at Nathan and took in the way he had interlaced his fingers with Haley's, his thumb stroking over the back of her hand while his face seemed to light up as he smiled at her child. Something within her relaxed at the way the young couple interacted with each other, although she was still hurt at not having been told beforehand of her daughter's marriage plans.

"I know it probably sounds incredibly cheesy and a cliché to say this but from the moment I met your daughter at my Mom's café, I knew she was the one." Nathan felt bad for lying to his in-laws, although technically it wasn't a total lie. After all, it was true that he knew very early on after having met Haley that first time that she was the one to help him with his plan. He had a feeling though that he might soon be meaning the words in the context that he was deliberately wanting the older couple to believe.

Haley blushed at his words and gently squeezed his hand. Despite her knowing the true reason behind what he was saying, she couldn't help wanting them to be true on all levels. The more time they were spending together, the stronger her feelings for Nathan were becoming and she had a feeling it would only increase once they were living in Chicago.

Jimmy and Lydia watched the way their daughter and her new husband looked at each other and while they still had strong reservations, particularly given her age and what they had been told about Nathan, they knew Haley was a good judge of character.

"Nathan, what exactly did your mother do?" The older man asked.

Glancing over at Haley and receiving a small nod in response, he took a deep breath before speaking. "She hired a private investigator to follow Haley. Apparently, my mother thinks she has an ulterior motive for marrying me."

Lydia's mouth dropped open in surprise. "What ulterior motive could she have?"

"Money," Haley replied simply. "Nathan is a very successful businessman plus he has money that he's inherited and Deb thinks I married him to get my hands on it, particularly given my circumstances."

"She knows why you moved away from home?"

"Yeah, she does, Mom. I told her a little about myself when I moved here but I never thought my words would be used against me."

"Oh, honey."

"You never doubted Haley's reasons for marrying you?" Jimmy enquired.

"No, Sir, I didn't. Maybe I would've done if she had been the one to propose to me," he quipped which earned a small smile from the other man. "I may not have known your daughter very long, but I know for certain she didn't marry me for my money and before you ask, yes, I knew about you being laid off from your job and her having to leave college."

"So, you were feeling sorry for her, then?" Jimmy knew the answer to the question but he wanted to hear the younger man's response nonetheless.

"Haley's a proud young woman and there's no way she would have agreed to marry me had that been the case, but, just for the record, it wasn't."

"I'm glad to hear it," he replied.

"We're still not happy about all of this, honey," Haley's mother said, her eyes looking at the couple sitting before her. "We missed out on your wedding and--"

"I know, Mom, and I'm sorry. While our wedding day was lovely, it wasn't the same as having the two of you and the rest of the family there," the auburn haired young woman said.

"We were thinking of, uh, having a blessing so that our families could all attend," Nathan suddenly announced.

"What!?" Jimmy exclaimed as he turned to look at his wife. Her face registered her complete surprise at Nathan's sudden announcement and he had a feeling he was sporting the same look. Actually, the shock and surprise from Deb Scott's phone call last night were probably still etched on his own face since it had yet to wear off.

"Nathan, I…"

Looking at his wife, Nathan smiled at her. "I know we hadn't agreed anything, Hales, but I think we should definitely do it," he told her. He hadn't planned on saying it but somehow it felt like the right thing to do and seeing the smiles on the others' faces, he was pleased he had gone with his gut feeling. It wasn't as though he and Haley weren't actually married and if they timed it right, maybe things between them would have changed so that this time it would be a _real_ wedding for them.

"Are you sure about this?" Haley asked as her eyes searched his face.

"I'm positive," he replied warmly. "So, Mrs Scott, you feel up to marrying me again?"

Turning her head, she regarded her parents who were watching her and Nathan and she smiled at them before looking back at her husband. "I'd love to."

* * *

"That was really nice of you offering to let them stay over," Haley said later that evening as she and Nathan prepared one of the guestrooms for her parents.

"Well, I figured pushing them out of the door wasn't the best way of staying on their good side," he teased.

"Hmm, that makes sense." Pausing in straightening the comforter on the bed, she nervously twisted her wedding ring around on her finger. "Were you serious about us having a blessing?"

"Yes."

"But… We don't have to do that an--"

"I know we don't, Hales, but I want to."

"Why?"

Instead of answering her verbally, he walked over to her and kissed her lips softly, his hands settling on her hips as he pulled her in closer to his body. Haley responded eagerly; her arms twining around his neck while she pushed herself up onto her toes for better access to his mouth.

"Did that answer your question?" Nathan asked, his fingers lightly trailing over her cheek.

"I…uh… I still don't understand. What exactly are you saying, Nathan?"

He nervously ran a hand through his hair as he took a few steps back and went and sat down on the edge of the bed. "I-I'm not sure, to be honest. It's just…this thing between us and… The way I feel about you… I don't want it to ever end. There, I've said it."

Haley stared at him incredulously, her heart thumping a mile-a-minute.

"Who knows, maybe when we're living together full-time in Chicago, I'll feel differently…we'll both feel differently about all of this but, personally, I don't think that's going to happen. At least not for me."

"For me either," she whispered.

"Really?"

She giggled at the almost shy tone to his voice and closing the distance between them, she sat down on his lap, his arms automatically coming around to hold her. "Really." Lowering her head, she kissed his mouth, retreating before it could become too heated. "I've got a suggestion to make."

"Okay, let's hear it."

"How about we hold off on the whole marriage blessing thing for a little while. Let's carry on getting to know each other like we originally planned. If, say, by Christmas we still feel this way about each other, we can start planning things and maybe set a date in the Spring. What do you think?"

Nathan's face practically lit up. What she had come up with was perfect. If things worked out the way she had outlined, by the time they had the marriage blessed almost a year would have passed so it wouldn't be as if they were rushing into anything.

"I take it by that smile you're happy with my suggestion?"

"Definitely," he told her, pulling her down for another kiss as he fell backwards onto the bed so he was lying down with her on top of him. "You think your parents will be okay with waiting a while or…"

"Or will they want to start planning it all immediately?" she joked before saying, "I think they'll be fine with waiting."

"Good," he whispered against her lips before seizing them once more. When the need for air became too strong to ignore, he broke the kiss and once his breathing had returned to normal, he said, "You do realise we face a bit of a problem with them being here at this point in time."

Haley shook her head with confusion. "How do you mean?"

"Well, we're a married couple yet we're not sharing a bedroom. All of your stuff is in another room and I'm sure they'll notice and wonder what that's all about."

"You're right." Thinking fast, she suggested, "Okay, why don't you finish getting this room ready for them and, in the meantime, I'll bring as much of my stuff into your room as I can. Anything that I leave in there we can say is just being stored while we sort things out for the move to Chicago."

"Good thinking. We'd better move fast since they'll be returning from their walk soon."

"Okay," she said, smiling as she planted one last kiss on his lips before moving off of him.

Going their separate ways, Nathan made sure everything in the guestroom was okay while Haley made several trips between her room and Nathan's, carrying armfuls of clothing together with as many of her other personal effects as she could.

Entering his bedroom again, he helped Haley hang her clothes up and put her things alongside his on the dresser and on the unused nightstand.

"I'm so sorry about this," she said apologising again.

"Nope, not listening," he teased before continuing, "You've got nothing to apologise for so I don't want to hear you say it. My mother on the other hand…"

Haley couldn't help laughing at the absurdity of the situation and she was relieved when he joined in with her. "At least my parents are only staying overnight and…I know this sounds weird, but in a way I think your mom has done us a favour. I mean, we'd be spending the rest of this week worrying about what their reaction to our news would be so at least this way they've made us face up to it all sooner."

He smirked. "Yep, you're definitely a weird one. I guess you've got a point but it still doesn't excuse what she did."

"I know," she said, leaning up and kissing his cheek. When he started laughing as they began to make their way downstairs, she regarded him curiously. "What's so funny?"

"I'm just thinking about my Mom. She's probably rubbing her hands with glee thinking about what the confrontation between us and your parents might be like."

"I'll bet. Actually, she probably thinks I'm halfway home with them right at this moment."

Suddenly, a thought popped into Nathan's head and his smile grew wider. "I've got an idea; how about we take your parents to the café for breakfast in the morning? It's only fair they get to meet her, don't you think?"

"You're terrible, you know that."

"Yep," he said, smirking. "So how about it? You up for a little fun tomorrow?"

"Oh, definitely," Haley responded, joining in with his laughter.


	17. Chapter Seventeen

**Author's Notes:** Thank you so much for the awesome feedback you all gave me for the previous chapter. I really appreciate it and I'm glad you're continuing to enjoy the story.

**lovemesomejames**: I'm hoping to have the story wrapped up in about 30-ish chapters as I don't want to drag things out just for the sake of it. As for how often I'll be updating it, I can't give you an actual set time frame for that, unfortunately. I am working on the next chapter (ie. Chapter 22) at the moment but I've got a lot going on right now and I'm not sure exactly when it'll be finished and posted. Whatever happens though, this story will definitely be completed. You have my word on that.

* * *

**Chapter Seventeen**

Deb Scott was furious and that was putting it mildly. The sight of her son and his… Haley laughing and joking along with her parents was not something she had been expecting to see when she had initially decided to call the James' and tell them of what their daughter had done with her son. She had been expecting them to be just as angry as she was but here they were, acting like one big happy family. And to think she had thought Haley was a sweet young girl when she had first met her. Looking over once again at the table they were all seated at, she knew she had seriously underestimated Haley James.

Having Haley no longer working at the café meant that they were short-staffed since she and Karen hadn't yet been able to find a replacement, so she had to help serve customers. When Deb had seen the group first enter the café, she had, of course, known immediately who the older man and woman with her son and Haley were and she had felt a surge of happiness well inside of her thinking there was bound to be some sort of confrontation. She could only hope that enough ugly words and accusations would be thrown around which would have Haley running back home with her tail between her legs.

She figured that Karen could hold the fort for her while she went to sort out Nathan's mess for him but upon closer inspection, she had realised the older couple didn't look angry or upset and that confused her. Surely they had to be angry that their daughter who was a good ten years younger than her son had gotten married without their knowledge or blessing.

Forcing herself to smile, Deb had gone over to introduce herself and take their orders but Nathan had beaten her to it, introducing Jimmy and Lydia James to her as his parents-in-law. It had taken all of her effort and willpower not to slap the smug look from his face.

"They seem nice," Karen said as she and Deb stood in the kitchen together.

"Nice? I don't care how nice they are," she spat. "I'll bet they put her up to this."

"Put who up for what?" The brunette asked, a confused look etched upon her face.

"I'll bet her parents put Haley up to it… Told her to find a rich husband who they could fleece for everything he has."

Karen laughed but it disappeared as she took in the look on the other woman's face. "Y-You can't be serious, Deb."

"I'm completely serious and if my son was thinking properly he'd know he was being taken for a ride. But no, he's being fooled by Little Miss Innocent over there with her big brown eyes and her constant blushing." She sighed loudly. "I knew we shouldn't have hired her."

Shaking her head, Karen said, "Really? How come you never voiced your concerns, then? If I remember correctly, you were the first one to mention how nice and sweet she was."

Deb waved her off. "Fine, she fooled me too. Satisfied?"

"Can you hear yourself? You really believe that Haley's parents sent her off to find a rich husband and that her arrival here in Tree Hill was all some conspiracy for her to meet Nathan?"

"Karen, I know it all sounds so far-fetched but you've got to believe me. There is more to this than them coincidentally meeting here in the café. There's got to be."

"Why? Because you want it to be true? I'm sorry, Deb, but I just don't buy it. Nathan isn't stupid and I'll bet he's had his fair share of girls trying to snag him because of how wealthy and successful he is but, from what we know, he's never let himself be snagged. Why then all of a sudden would this young girl suddenly be able to do what others haven't?"

The blonde shrugged her shoulders as she tried to come up with a plausible response. From her position, she could see Nathan smiling at Haley and she had to admit she had never seen him look at anyone that way before, but that didn't mean her theory wasn't true.

Finally, she answered Karen's question. "Most likely because she's so different to them. Haley has that wholesome look about her whereas those other woman probably all look and sound the same. Her innocence is what he's attracted to."

"I don't buy it, Deb. I can't believe someone could be that deceitful without someone becoming at least a little suspicious. Lucas and Brooke have spent so much time with her in the time that she's been here that I'm sure they'd have picked up on something."

Deb released a hollow laugh. "C'mon, deceiving Brooke isn't all that difficult."

"Excuse me? That's my daughter-in-law you're insulting there."

"Fine, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that. I just meant that Brooke can be quite trusting and it wouldn't be hard for someone as conniving as Haley to put one over on her."

"And what about Luke? Are you saying he's too stupid to know when someone's pulling the wool over his eyes as well?"

"No, of course not and, like I said, I didn't mean to insult Brooke either. They're my family, too." She inwardly cursed herself for having insulted Karen's family, particularly given that she needed her—them on her side. "I just don't want to see Nathan get hurt and I'm afraid that's exactly what's going to happen. He's all smiles now but this girl has the ability to break his heart, I just know it."

Watching Deb's face, Karen saw her staring at the table her son and his new wife were seated at with his new in-laws and she recognised the determined look in her eyes and she felt a tiny shiver run through her body. It reminded her exactly of Dan Scott.

* * *

"So, your mother doesn't seem to have much to say for herself," Jimmy said, looking over at Nathan before taking a sip of his coffee. "From the things you've said, I figured she wouldn't hold back telling us how bad you were for Haley."

Nathan nodded as his eyes searched for his mother and he noticed her staring at him, a look he recognised only too well in her eyes. "Oh, believe me, she's not happy. My guess is, she thought you and Mrs James would be halfway back home with Haley so she's probably still in a state of shock to see us all here having breakfast together."

Jimmy and Lydia glanced at each other as they took in what their son-in-law was saying; they couldn't help but be concerned at what their youngest daughter had let herself in for by getting involved with Nathan.

"Karen seems nice," Lydia stated, breaking the silence that had suddenly taken over the table.

Haley smiled at her mother's words. "Yeah, she is… I'm really going to miss working with her."

"Well, she's your family too now, Hales, so it's not like you're not going to be seeing or talking to her."

"I know, but it'll be different and--"

"Can I get anyone a refill?" Deb asked, suddenly appearing at the table. A smile was fixed on her face but it didn't quite reach her eyes.

"Sure, I'd love some more," Jimmy said as he held out his cup to her.

"Mom, why don't you join us?"

"I'm far too busy, Nathan," she replied, gesturing offhandedly to the café which had emptied out some since their initial arrival before adding pointedly, "As you know, we are a little short-staffed these days."

Nathan was just about to reply when Haley cut in and said, "And who's fault is that, Deb? I'm more than happy to carry on working here until I move to Chicago with Nathan, but given your recent actions, I didn't think I'd be particularly welcome here."

Deb couldn't help but be slightly taken aback by the young woman's response. She certainly hadn't been expecting her to answer back like that. "Hmm, kitty has claws," she mumbled under her breath before turning to walk away.

"Excuse me?"

"Mom, it's okay…" Haley said, trying to stop her mother from getting into an argument with the other woman.

"No, honey, it isn't. I want to know what you meant by that, Mrs Scott?"

Turning back to the face the woman, Deb gave her what could only be described as a sarcastic smile. "Oh, just that your little girl seems to be all sweet and innocent when she wants something like, say, to fool my son but when someone doesn't fall for her act, then her true colours are shown. Isn't that right, Haley?"

"Mom! I warned you the other night…" Nathan started only to be cut off by his mother.

"You really expect me to believe you'll cut me out of your life for this little--"

"I'd be very careful about what the next words out of your mouth are, Mrs Scott?" Jimmy interrupted, pushing his chair back and standing up to face her.

"I'm just curious," Deb said, looking him right in the eyes. "Was it you or your wife who put Haley up to the idea of finding herself a rich husband to solve all of your money problems?"

Nathan stared at his mother incredulously as her vile words sunk in. "I can't believe you. Actually, what am I saying? Of course I can believe you'd say something like that, especially since you seem to suddenly be channelling Dad. You wanted to know if I'd cut you out of my life for Haley, well you're about to find out."

"Nathan, I--"

"No, you've gone too far this time. Having a PI follow Haley around was bad enough, phoning her parents behind our back was despicable but actually spouting this rubbish to their faces, I'm sorry, but that's it. Unless and until you can accept her as my wife, I don't want to see or hear from you."

Haley watched the scene unfolding before her eyes and she felt the sting of tears. She looked over at her parents and saw the matching expression of shock and disbelief on their faces and her heart hurt. All she could hope was that they didn't think less of Nathan for any of this… They had always taught her to respect her elders but in this instance, she backed her husband one hundred percent. But a part of her couldn't help but feel sorry for Deb at the same time. Taking a deep breath, she spoke.

"It doesn't have to--"

"This is all your fault," the blonde spat angrily. "I know you're behind this… You're the reason my son suddenly hates me and--"

Nathan couldn't help laughing. "Right. All those years you weren't around… All those years that you left me with _him_ while you travelled around for your job and whatever else, that's all down to Haley, huh? The way you're talking, you'd think we were family of the year. Let me ask you something though, why do you think I chose to live in Chicago instead of sticking around here even after Dad was gone? I mean, I could have easily opened up a branch of the company here and travelled to Chicago as and when necessary but I didn't."

"You're my son, Nathan… My only child and I love you," Deb said quietly, her hand reaching out to touch him and a stab of pain spread through her body when he took a step back.

"You've got a funny way of showing it." He released a heavy sigh. The last thing he wanted was to have this conversation in front of his new in-laws, let alone having it in front of them in a public place with members of the local community watching and listening avidly, but at least there weren't as many people as there had been initially. Although given the gossip mill, no doubt this would be all over town by lunchtime.

"I get that me getting married so fast is a shock for you and yeah, a part of me is sorry that you weren't there for our wedding but given the way you've been acting since you found out about mine and Haley's relationship, do you blame us for not telling you beforehand? And for the record, it was my idea to do that."

Turning to look at his wife, Nathan saw the tear tracks on her face and his heart suddenly felt even heavier in his chest. Taking his car keys out of his pocket, he handed them to her and gave her a reassuring smile. "Hales, why don't you take your parents out to the car while I finish up in here?"

"Are you sure?"

He nodded and leaning forward, he pressed a soft kiss to her lips. "Yeah. I'll be out in a few minutes."

"It was nice meeting you, Karen," Lydia called out to the other woman who smiled in return.

"It was nice meeting you both, too."

Jimmy smiled at the brunette in response and closing the short gap between him and Nathan, he squeezed his shoulder reassuringly. "See you in a few, son." Glancing at Deb, he simply said, "Mrs Scott," and wasn't surprised when she didn't even bother to look at him.

After the three of them had exited the café, Nathan and Deb simply stood staring at each other for a long moment before she spoke.

"Let's take this into the kitchen."

Laughing sarcastically, he said, "Why? It's not like this won't be all over town in a few hours anyway so what's the point?"

"You had to bring them here, didn't you?"

"Uh, you're the one who brought them to Tree Hill, Mom, so don't put this on me. Haley and I were showing them around town and we decided to come here for breakfast."

"You're going to regret marrying her, Nathan, mark my words. She's so far out of your league and right now you can't see that but just wait until you have to take her with you to work functions. You'll soon see the mistake you've made."

"Seriously, can you hear yourself? The way you talk you'd think we were royalty or something. I've never been a snob and that's not going to suddenly change. Just because you seem to calculate someone's worth by how much money their family has, that's your problem, not mine." He looked at her for a moment before realising he was most likely wasting his breath and he began making his way towards the door.

"Nathan, wait!"

"Why? So you can badmouth Haley and her parents some more? I don't think so."

"Just what does she have on you?" Deb asked, her hands twisting in front of her. "Is she blackmailing you because if she is--"

Nathan shook his head sadly. "You really don't get it do you… You just can't accept that I'm in love with her, that I've chosen to spend my life with her."

"She's going to hurt you, Nathan."

"And what? You'll be there to tell me 'I told you so', huh? Well, fine. I give you permission to say it but you know what? You'll never get a chance to because she's not going to hurt me, just like I'm not going to hurt her. The only person who's going to be hurt is you because you'll miss out on seeing me and on seeing your future grandkids."

"So, she is pregnant. I knew it!"

"None of this is getting through to you, is it? For the last time, Haley is not pregnant and when I mentioned kids, I meant when we decide to have them which isn't going to be for a long while yet. If you want to be a part of our and their lives, you know what you have to do." Giving her one last look, he opened the door to the café and walked out, not once looking back.

Knowing that the café's remaining patrons were looking at her, Deb held her head up high as she made her way back to the kitchen and once in there, the tears she had been holding back started to fall from her eyes.

"Did you really call Haley's parents to tell them she and Nathan had gotten married?" Karen enquired.

"They had a right to know."

"But like that?"

"I had to do something, Karen. He's my son and I love him… I just can't stand by while that little bitch makes him a laughing stock."

Karen shook her head as she listened to her friend's words. She knew that as long as she held that belief, her relationship with her only son would continue to suffer and she would have no one but herself to blame. Right now, there was no point in voicing her thoughts so instead she simply said, "Why don't you go home, Deb? I can manage here on my own and--"

"No, I need to keep busy. If you don't mind, I'll stay here in the kitchen… Like Nathan said, I'm sure news of what's happened here this morning is probably spreading like wildfire already."

"Sure, that's probably for the best," the brunette agreed and upon hearing the bell above the door ring out, she headed back to the counter to serve the customer who had just walked in.

Pulling out a chair, Deb sat down and stared off into space as she recalled the look on her son's face just before he walked out of the cafe. There was no way in hell she was going to lose him to someone as insignificant as Haley James and all she needed to do was prove to him that she had been right about her all along. How hard could that be?

* * *

"I-I'm sorry about all that back in the café," Nathan said to his parents-in-law as soon as they had arrived home. The car ride back had been made in tense silence and he had literally felt his palms sweating. He wouldn't have blamed them in the slightest if they had decided to take Haley back home with them when they left.

"You've got nothing to apologise for," Lydia told him before adding, "Your mother on the other hand."

"I know, the things she was saying… I just need you to know that I don't share her views." Turning to look at Haley who hadn't said a word, he came to a decision and started to say, "There's something you probably need to--"

Haley's eyes widened when she realised he was going to tell them the truth and she quickly shook her head. "Nathan, don't."

"Hales, I…"

"No."

Jimmy and Lydia shared confused looks.

"What's going on?" Jimmy asked a moment later when the young couple in front of him hadn't said anything further.

"It's not important, Daddy."

"Maybe I should be the judge of that. Nathan, you want to finish what you were saying?"

Quickly trying to think of an alternative, he suddenly said, "Several years ago my Mom was treated for an addiction to prescription drugs and it's possible… It's possible she's back on them and that's where all this crazy stuff she's spouting is coming from."

Having heard him talk a little about that time in his life and knowing how horrible it had been for him, Haley walked over to him and hugged him tightly, her hand rubbing up and down his back soothingly.

"Oh, honey, I'm so sorry to hear that," Lydia said as she placed a gentle hand on his shoulder.

Nathan hated lying to them, he knew for definite that his mother hadn't touched drugs for years and that she was still clean but if Haley didn't want him telling her parents the truth, then he would respect her decision. Hell, the James' already thought his mother was cracked so telling them this white lie probably wouldn't make that much of a difference.

"Thanks, maybe I'm wrong but…"

"It would make sense though," Jimmy mused.

"Would you like me to make you some sandwiches for the ride back home," Haley asked a few moments later as they entered the living room and she frowned when her mother laughed. "What?"

"Trying to get rid of us already, huh, Haley-Bop?"

"No, of course not."

Jimmy laughed. "Some sandwiches would be great, honey. Actually, we figured we'd hit the road in a couple of hours and we'd visit Quinn on the way back. She's never going to believe her little sister has gotten married."

Moving from Nathan to her father, Haley hugged him and said, "Tell her I'm sorry we didn't tell you all beforehand. Everyone will definitely be invited to the blessing when we have it."

"We'll tell her… Actually, maybe you should give your brothers and sisters a call and tell them the good news."

"Um…"

"C'mon, Haley-Bop, it's only fair they hear it from you and not us," her mother said, agreeing with her husband.

"Okay, you're right. I just hope the boys don't all decide to come here and pay Nathan a visit," Haley teased.

"Woah, what?"

"I see that got your attention, Nate," Jimmy said, chuckling at the look on his son-in-law's face.

"C'mon, Hales, I'll give you a hand with those sandwiches and you can tell me whether I need to be worried about your brothers," Nathan said, taking his wife's hand and pulling her behind him into the kitchen, the sound of laughter filling the air.

* * *

Lying in bed together later that night, Nathan released a sigh of relief. "Well, at least that's all over with now." He hadn't been surprised when Haley had asked if she could share his bed again given the events of that morning. If anything, he needed that feeling of comfort, too.

"Huh?"

"You know, telling your parents."

"Yeah, now I just need to tell my siblings. Can't wait," Haley muttered sarcastically.

"C'mon, it probably won't be that bad."

"True, it won't be as bad as telling Deb but I can't see them being happy about being kept in the dark."

"Okay, I'll give you that but at least your parents have met me and they seem to like me. Although, after meeting my Mom today, I can't say I'd blame them if they changed their minds."

Turning onto her side to face him, Haley shook her head. "They haven't changed their minds about you, Nathan, and they're not going to." Remembering what he had almost done earlier on, she asked, "Were you really going to tell them the truth about why we're together? I mean, how we got together to start with."

"If you hadn't have stopped me, yeah, I was. I don't know if it would've necessarily been the right thing but I just didn't know what else to do."

"I'm sorry you had to tell them about your mom's addiction and use that as an excuse."

"Hey, no apologies, okay. And after all the crap she was saying today, it's no more than she deserves. I just…I hate that she made you cry again." His fingers lightly trailed over her cheek and leaning forward, he covered her mouth with his and kissed her slowly.

Haley kept her eyes closed even after the kiss had ended, still savouring the taste and feel of his lips. "I wasn't crying because of her," she admitted after a minute or two had passed. "I was crying because I hated how much she was still hurting you." Her eyes fluttered open and seeing the intense way he was watching her, how his blue eyes had darkened, she bit her bottom lip to prevent herself from releasing the moan she could feel bubbling within her.

Hearing her confession, Nathan's feelings for her increased in their intensity and he stole her lips in another kiss, this one even hotter than its predecessor. His tongue slipped into her mouth and explored every hidden crevice while his hand moved to her waist and pulled her closer to his body.

When the kiss finally broke, he hugged her to him, burying his face into her soft, silky hair and he mouthed the three words he had been feeling for her for a while now. He had never uttered those words to another woman before and a part of him still wasn't ready to say them out loud hence him mouthing them, but he knew it wouldn't be long before he was able to.

When he did say them though, he wanted the timing to be right and for it to be all about Haley. The last thing he wanted was for her to think he was only saying it because of her help and support in this situation with his mother. He could only hope that she felt the same way about him.

Finally drawing back from her, he rubbed his nose against hers as he rested their foreheads together. "Thank you… For everything, Hales."

Haley smiled back at him, her palm cupping his cheek while her thumb rubbed back and forth along his cheekbone. Just before her lips met his once more, she whispered, "You're welcome."


	18. Chapter Eighteen

**Author's Notes:** Firstly, I'm sorry for the delay in getting this chapter posted. Thanks so much for the fab feedback you gave me for the last chapter and I really hope you all enjoy this new one.

* * *

**Chapter Eighteen**

_Two weeks later…_

Having finished unpacking all of her things into her new room, Haley took a quick shower before getting dressed into her favourite old faded jeans and a mauve silkscreen baby T-shirt.

Hearing footsteps coming down the stairs, Nathan glanced up from the newspaper he was reading and smiled at Haley as she entered the den. "You all settled in?"

"Uh huh," she replied, taking a seat on the couch and curling her legs underneath herself. "The bedroom you've given me is gorgeous… Hell, this whole house is amazing."

The four bedroom, three bathroom, detached house which had both a front and large rear garden as well as a double garage was situated in a residential area not far from where Nathan's offices were. As soon as Haley had seen it upon their arrival that morning, she had fallen head over heels in love with it and couldn't believe that this was now her home. It was a far cry from the tiny apartment she had been living in before she had moved into the beach house with him.

He nodded his agreement at her last statement. "It is, isn't it? I used to drive past this place on my way in to work each day when I first moved out here and I knew that as soon as I could afford it, I would one day own a place like this. I never dreamt that I'd own this very house but it seemed like fate or something when it came on the market just as I was looking to move."

Haley laughed and she watched his forehead crease. "I'm sorry, but I didn't think you'd be someone who believed in fate."

Laughing along with her, Nathan acknowledged what she was saying as he folded up his paper and pushed himself out of his chair, making his way over to her. "Yeah, just don't go telling anyone else," he quipped as he took a seat beside her and then pulled her onto his lap.

"Hey, I was comfortable where I was," she said, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips.

"I figured you'd be more comfortable here." His fingers brushed away the loose tendrils of hair that had fallen from her ponytail and inching closer to her, he covered her mouth with his and kissed her slowly.

Haley fisted his shirt as she lost herself in the feel of his soft lips touching hers and when his tongue requested entrance, she complied, parting her lips and moaning into his mouth when it curled around her own.

Since they had arrived in Chicago just that morning, she felt the invisible weight that had been pressing down upon her shoulders immediately cease and she hoped that the distance between here and Tree Hill and a certain resident who lived there would make everything go more smoothly. The stress she had felt as a result of all the worrying she had been doing had started making her feel sick to her stomach.

Granted, she had no complaints where Nathan was concerned; he had treated her with nothing but utter respect and had given her his complete support but she couldn't help but feel a little bad at the very least that she was a part of the animosity between him and his mother.

"Where did you go?" Nathan asked, his thumb rubbing softly along her cheekbone.

"Sorry, just thinking…" she answered, leaning into his touch.

"Anyone ever tell you that you think too much?"

"Constantly." Haley's eyes twinkled with merriment at their playful banter and she squealed when he suddenly turned and fell backwards on the couch, bringing her along with him so that she was now lying on top of him. "Nathan!"

"I'll bet I can get you to stop thinking," he teased while his fingers inched beneath her T-shirt to lightly trace shapes over her skin. Before she could say anything, his lips fused with hers once more and he kissed her hard, pouring everything he felt for her into it.

Kissing had never been a big deal for him. He liked it fine but, as far as he was concerned, it was usually just a precursor to the main event, for want of a better description. But, with Haley, he just couldn't get enough of kissing her.

It completely consumed him; the scent of her petal-soft skin combined with that of her hair, the taste of her as his tongue explored every part of her mouth all served to make kissing a totally new experience for him. He could literally spend hours kissing her and ever since they had both decided to try this whole thing for real, that's exactly what they had been doing.

Nathan moaned into her mouth when she shifted her position and straddled his hips, rubbing herself against his erection which was pressing painfully against the fly of his pants. The light teasing touch of her fingers under his polo shirt was making him dizzy as all the blood in his body seemed to rush to _that_ part of his anatomy and he finally had no choice but to break the kiss, gasping in large lungfuls of air once he had.

The thrumming throughout his body didn't cease, however, since Haley was now sucking on his neck, grazing the flesh with her teeth. God! All he wanted to do was strip them both naked and do everything to her and with her that he had been dreaming and fantasizing about since he had first met her.

But he couldn't. He had promised her that he wouldn't push her into anything she wasn't ready for but hell. When she kissed him like that…touched him like that, all thoughts of being a good guy pretty much flew out of the window.

The feel of her licking and nibbling on his bottom lip almost made him miss the fact that her hands were on his belt and he quickly covered and stilled them from going any further. His control was fast slipping and he knew that if she touched him _there_, then that would be it. He wouldn't be responsible for his actions.

Not knowing what to say without hurting her feelings, he blurted out, "So, uh, are you hungry?"

Haley smiled against his jaw where she was currently dropping wet, open-mouthed kisses along it. "Oh, I'm hungry for you," she whispered, breaking out into a fit of giggles.

Nathan couldn't help chuckling at her response. "Cheesy, much?"

"Shut up!" Shifting up his body slightly, she looked down at him and smirked before slanting her mouth over his and kissing him again. Her thighs pressed in, tightening their hold on him as her lips devoured him, her tongue slipping between his lips to tangle with his own.

All thought left his mind as he gave himself over to the kiss; his hands slid under her top and rubbed her back, his fingers tracing over the clasp of her bra as he fought the strong urge to flick it open. A part of him couldn't help wondering what response he would get from her if he just did as he was desperately wanting to do and, judging by the way she was kissing and touching him, he had a feeling it wouldn't be an adverse one.

"Haley?" he finally whispered against her lips several long moments later.

"Uh huh?" Her mouth moved down from his lips and was now suckling on his Adam's apple and Nathan felt himself harden further as the thought of her sucking something else suddenly popped into his head.

Gripping her shoulders in each hand, he gently eased her up so that he could look into her face. "I-I think we need to stop." He saw the look of doubt that crept onto her pretty features and he mentally kicked himself. "I just--"

"It's okay, Nathan. I, uh, I guess we got a little carried away, huh?" Haley made to move off of him but he wasn't having it and he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her forward so she was once again lying on top of him.

"I love getting carried away with you," he told her honestly, his fingers gently caressing her cheek. "I just…I don't want you thinking I'm taking advantage of our situation and--"

"I don't," she quickly interrupted. "And for the record? I love getting carried away with you, too. You're a pretty good kisser." A light blush coloured her cheeks at her admission.

"Just pretty good? Damn, I think I need to work on my technique a little more. Care to help me out, Mrs Scott?"

"Hmm, if I must," she said, mock-pouting before breaking out into laughter again.

"Oh, you must," he insisted, his lips seizing hers in a deeply passionate kiss which tugged at him deep inside.

"God, I love you!" Haley blurted out without thinking several minutes later when the kiss had ended.

Nathan's eyes widened and his mouth dropped open in shock. "W-What?" He had to have heard her wrong.

Realising just what she had said, she quickly shook her head as she tried to scramble off of him. "Nothing… I-I didn't say--"

Tightening his hold on her, he whispered, "Did you mean it?" Deep down inside, he silently prayed that she did. He had known for some time that he had fallen in love with her but he hadn't wanted to scare her by admitting the depth of his feelings for her…not yet, not when everything was still so new and plus, they had his mother to deal with which hadn't exactly been helping matters.

Haley stared into the deep blue of his eyes and she wasn't sure if she was really seeing it or if it was wishful thinking on her part, but she thought she saw a glimmer of…hope there. Was he hoping that her answer would be yes or…was he wanting her answer to be no?

"It's okay, Haley, you don't have to answer me. I said I wouldn't pus--"

"Yes!" She made a silent wish that she had chosen the right answer as her eyes squeezed shut, not wanting to see the truth in his eyes if she had made the wrong decision.

"Yes, what?"

"Yes, I meant it," she whispered.

Leaning up, he pressed a soft kiss to the corner of her mouth. "Open your eyes," he coaxed and he impatiently waited for her to do as he had asked. His lips were curved up into a smile, wanting her to see that he was happy…ecstatic with her answer when she finally did so.

Taking a quiet, deep breath, Haley opened her eyes and saw his smiling face and her entire body seemed to instantly relax.

"Say it again. Please?" When she began shaking her head, he repeated, "Please."

"I-I love you, Nathan."

Nathan breathed a huge sigh of relief and, if possible, his smile widened even further. "I love you, too, Haley. I love you, too."

"Really?"

"Yes," he admitted. "I was worried at first that I was confusing gratitude over you helping me and all the stuff that was happening with my Mom for love but I knew that wasn't true for definite a couple of weeks ago. I, uh…" His words trailed off as he mentally debated whether to tell her the rest of it.

"You what?" Haley prompted when he still hadn't spoken.

"I mouthed the words into your hair that night when you were crying and I thought my Mom had been the reason for it until you admitted you were crying because you hated how much she was still hurting me. I knew in that moment that…you were the one for me."

Her eyes filled with tears at his words and she buried her face in the nook between his neck and shoulder and hugged him tightly. Turning her head to the side, she pressed her lips to his cheek before whispering into his ear, "You're the one for me, too. I know from what you've told me and from what I've heard in general about your dad that he wasn't a nice person…"

"That's putting it mildly," he chuckled, his hand rubbing up and down her back.

"But, I'll always be grateful to him for bringing us together."

"Well, technically Luke brought us together."

"Smartass," she said, swatting his arm playfully. "You know what I mean."

"Yeah, I do. And I'm grateful to him, too. If it wasn't for that stupid-ass clause in his Will, we probably would never have met."

Cocking her head to one side, she smiled. "You never know, maybe fate would've had a hand to play in it," she teased which earned her a slap on her butt. "Hey!"

"You're not going to let me live the fate thing down, are you?"

"Nope." Pressing her lips to his cheek, she blew a raspberry on it which had him groaning.

"Nuh huh, kisses only, please."

"Fine," she mumbled before peppering his cheeks with butterfly kisses. "Better?"

"Much," he replied, turning his face quickly to capture her mouth.

As the kiss became even more passionate, Nathan managed to turn them so that they were lying side by side on the wide couch and his fingers lightly trailed over the back of her neck and he felt her shiver in response.

Haley was the one to break the kiss this time and she smiled shyly at him before voicing the question she had been wondering about ever since they had arrived at the house. "Why did you give me my own room?"

The question took him by surprise and he looked at her for a moment before answering her. "I figured you'd want your own space… I mean, you had your own room back in Tree Hill and--"

"I liked sharing with you." God, what was it with her tonight and blurting things out without thinking first, she asked herself sternly. It was so unlike her.

"I liked sharing with you as well," he confessed before continuing, "But I didn't want you to think that things were going to suddenly change once we were living here away from our family and friends."

Bringing her hand to his face, she cupped his cheek in her palm and smiled at him warmly. "I wouldn't have thought that, Nathan."

Kissing her chastely, he pulled back sooner than she obviously liked given the pout that formed on her lips and he laughed. "So, do you want to share with me, then?"

"Are you okay with us not, um, having se--"

"You know I am, Hales. But, given the way things were moving a little while ago, I'm guessing it won't be long before you'll have me giving in," he teased in a Southern drawl and batting his eyelashes at her.

"Hah! We'll see about that," she responded with a giggle and he frowned.

"Wait, please tell me you're not going to hold out on me just to prove a point?"

Leaning forward, she flicked her tongue over his bottom lip. "You'll just have to wait and see now, won't you?"

"Yeah, I will," he told her before seizing her lips in a dirty, hungry kiss which had them both breathless in seconds.

"You win…" she said once she had caught her breath.

"I always do," he said, smirking back at her and then planting a kiss onto her chin.

"You're pretty full of yourself, aren't you?" Seeing his eyes twinkle and guessing what his retort was most likely going to be, she quickly placed her palm over his mouth to prevent his words from escaping. "How about we cool things down a little and grab something to eat?"

"Got you a little worked up, huh?"

"Now that would be telling, honey," she replied sweetly. "So, dinner?"

"Sounds good to me, I've worked up quite an appetite," Nathan told her, the smirk still very much in place, as he moved off the couch and stood up, holding his hands out for her to take which she did. "Do you feel like going out or staying in?"

"Staying in sounds good since it's been a pretty long day."

"Fine by me and as the cupboards are pretty bare, how about we order in Thai food? There's a great place not far from here that delivers… Their menu should be in one of the drawers in the kitchen."

Haley nodded her agreement to his suggestion. "Thai would be great. I'll go look for the menu," she said, giving his fingers a squeeze before releasing his hand and making her way out of the room.

Nathan stood there watching her leave with a big smile stretched across his face. He knew getting out of Tree Hill and away from the small town gossip would be a good thing but he hadn't expected it to be this good so soon. Haley seemed so much more relaxed, as did he if was being honest with himself. All the tensions seemed to evaporate now that they were completely alone together, although he couldn't help being a little nervous about how quickly things were progressing with her. He knew deep down that he should maybe slow things down a bit but, going by what had happened here just a short while ago on the couch, it seemed that wasn't what either of them wanted and he couldn't be sorry about that.

If he could get that worked up just from kissing her and innocently touching her, god only knew what would happen when things escalated even further.

"Nathan? What do you want off this menu?"

Her voice broke him out of his thoughts and with the smile still gracing his features, he went to tell her just what he wanted.

* * *

"Seriously, that was some of the best food I've ever eaten," Haley said as she rinsed out their wine glasses while Nathan placed the leftovers in the fridge and got rid of the empty food cartons.

"I know, I think that was my reaction the very first time I ate food from there," he told her with a grin. "Hey, how about tomorrow night we go out to my favourite pizza place?"

Laughing, she replied, "You're going to make me fat, you know that?"

Walking over to her, he shook his head. "It's just nice being with someone who enjoys their food as much as I do."

"Are you calling me a pig?" she mock-huffed.

"Oink oink," he teased and he quickly moved away when she went to hit him.

"Nathan!"

"Sorry, I'm only teasing. I meant what I said though, it's nice to be able to have pizza or a burger with a girl and not hear her bitching about all the calories and fat in it. I love that you've got a healthy appetite."

"Uh, thanks, I guess. I think that's the first time I've received a compliment like that," she said, laughing.

"You're welcome. Are we all finished down here now?"

"Yes, everything's washed up and put away. Why?"

"C'mon," he told her, taking her hand in his and leading the way. Before exiting the kitchen, he flipped off the lights in there before going over to the security panel by the front door and setting the alarm for the night.

"Where?" Haley asked, even though she knew it was a stupid question. Nathan didn't answer her, instead giving her a heated look which melted her insides and she felt her skin grow warm.

"I love it when you blush," he whispered seductively into her ear and she felt her knees grow weak at feeling his hot breath puffing against her skin. "I love everything about you, Hales."

She couldn't take it anymore and her hands planted themselves on either side of his head as she held him still and slanted her mouth over his, kissing him as hard and as deep as she could. Her tongue tangled wetly with his and all that could be heard was the sound of their harsh breathing coming in heavy pants as they practically devoured one another.

It was Nathan who was startled when she suddenly broke away from him and began pulling him upstairs. His breath was caught in his throat, as were his words, so he simply followed as she led him into his bedroom.

"Hales, I--"

"I want you!" Haley stated firmly, her cheeks a rosy red belying her nervousness as she forced herself to look him in the eyes while she spoke, wanting him to know that she meant this.

He inwardly groaned at her words which sent a jolt of lust directly to his groin. "We-We can't… It's too soon and--"

"Do you want me?" she interrupted and her eyes fell to the plush carpet beneath her feet as she waited for him to answer.

"God, yes… I want you so much," he told her, his fingers beneath her chin tilting her face up so she was looking at him again.

"Then what's the problem? I-I know I've never done it before but…"

"I don't want you to regret this, baby. Our situation, it's…it's not a normal thing and I don't want you to one day wonder what the hell you got yourself into. Why you wasted your first time on me," he said, whispering that last part.

It was her turn to reassure him which she did. Her hand cupped the back of his head and directed his mouth to hers where she suckled on first his bottom lip and then his top lip before returning once more to the bottom one and nibbling on it. "Nathan, I will never regret you…ever."

"Haley, I--"

"No, let me finish." Receiving a nod from him, she continued. "Nobody, with the exception of my family, has ever treated me the way you do and that's one of the reasons I've fallen in love with you. You're a good guy and I can't imagine ever meeting anyone quite like you again."

"I am pretty unique," he remarked with a smirk which made her giggle.

"Ah, there's that ego I love so much," she teased, tracing her thumb along his cheekbone.

He covered her hand with his and looked into the rich chocolate pools of her eyes. "Are you sure about this? I don't want you to feel like you have to do this or that I'm pressuring you into something you're not ready for."

"I'm positive," she told him honestly. "I don't want this to be something we plan to death which will probably feel all kinds of awkward, you know. I just want it to be a natural progression and, I don't know, tonight has been so…"

"Yeah, it has," he said, knowing exactly what she meant. "I just want this to be special for you…for us."

Wrapping her arms around his neck, her fingers toyed with the short hair at the back of it and she rubbed her nose against his in a soft Eskimo kiss. "It will be," she said before kissing his lips softly and repeating in a quiet yet confident voice, "It will be."


	19. Chapter Nineteen

**Author's Notes:** Thanks so much for all of the wonderful reviews you gave me for the last chapter. I'm so glad you all enjoyed it and I hope you like this next one.

Thanks also to those of you who feedbacked my most recent oneshot, '**Some Kind of Bliss**'. I'm really happy that was well received and you might be pleased to know that I'm planning on extending it.

* * *

**Chapter Nineteen**

The air around them crackled with electricity, their eyes were locked on one another as they both took in the enormity of the situation.

Nathan's heart was pounding wildly in his chest, the sound echoing in his ears and he wondered if Haley could hear it, too. Looking at her standing before him, he took in her kiss-swollen lips and the way her teeth were nibbling on the bottom one, the pretty blush that was colouring her cheeks and going by how her chest was rising and falling with each breath, he was sure she was experiencing the same feelings that he was.

His hand reached out and released her hair from the scrunchie that was holding it up, threading his fingers through the silky strands as he directed her mouth back to his. The kiss was soft and tender but with a promise of what was to come. He parted his lips when he felt her tongue seeking entrance and he couldn't help but moan when she flicked the tip of it along the roof of his mouth.

The sensation of her blunt fingernails raking along his scalp and down the back of his neck were sending tiny little shockwaves throughout his body and his fingers gripped her hips, pulling her in even closer to him. One of his hands moved around to her back and he slipped it beneath her T-shirt, caressing her soft skin, slowly working his way higher until he once again reached the clasp of her bra. Even though she had told him what she wanted, there was still a hesitation residing within him as he wondered whether this was really what she wanted.

"Do it… I want you to," Haley whispered by his ear a short moment later and it was all he needed to hear.

After popping the clasp, he then splayed his fingers wide, spanning her back and holding her close to him as his lips once again found hers. His free hand moved to her butt, giving it a gentle squeeze before he slipped it under the waistband of her jeans and lightly stroked his thumb along her skin.

When the kiss broke several minutes later, Nathan kissed down the slender column of her throat, sucking on the base of it upon his arrival there. Feeling a tugging on his shirt, he drew back slightly and looked into his wife's face. "Are you okay?"

Haley smiled shyly back at him and nodded her head. "More than…" she said quietly, adding, "I was, uh, actually trying to get your shirt off."

"Oh, well, by all means," he teased, taking a step back so that she had more room to accomplish her task.

"Nathan…"

"What?" Cupping her face between his palms, he said, "I need to know that this is really what you want, Hales."

"It is," she quickly told him.

"Then show me."

Haley hesitated for a moment before her fingers found the hem of his polo shirt once more and she slowly drew it up his body, revealing his bare skin to her gaze. When he raised his arms to aid her, she pulled it up and over his head, letting the garment fall to the floor before she placed her palms flat against his chest, feeling the beat of his heart beneath them.

Pushing herself up onto her tiptoes, she found Nathan's mouth again and kissed him harder than before, her hands stroking all over his back and shoulders, her fingers revelling in the feel of his warm skin.

"Hales…" Nathan gripped her waist even tighter as he lost himself in the kisses they were sharing. He slowly inched her top up and he smiled against Haley's lips when he felt her arms raise up and he broke away from her for just the length of time it took for the garment to clear her head. As soon as it did, his lips were once more fused with hers and his fingers slid the straps of bra down her arms before that joined her T-shirt on the floor.

A deep moan escaped Haley's lips when she felt his large hands cupping her bare breasts and her hold on his shoulders tightened. The moan turned into a gasp when he began gently massaging them and she felt the sensation travel straight to her core. When the need for air became too strong to ignore, she pulled away from him and panted against his neck, her breath coming in short pants as she fought to get it back under control.

Her eyes met his and she saw everything she was feeling for him reflected in them and she felt her lips curve upwards. She pressed wet, open-mouthed kisses along his jaw-line while her fingers idly toyed with the hair at the nape of his neck.

Nathan's fingers hovered over the waistband of her jeans, leisurely grazing along the skin there and he felt the tremble that ran through her. He slowly began lowering the zipper, giving her ample time to change her mind and he unconsciously held his breath as he waited for the words to come. But they didn't. Instead, the breath caught in his throat when Haley began doing the same to the zipper on his pants. The sensation of her lips trailing down his throat and across his collarbone while her fingers lightly caressed his abdomen was beginning to drive him insane. While he loved that they were taking their time, a part of him desperately wanted to throw her down onto his bed and show her just how much he wanted her.

When he felt Haley's hand slip beneath the waistband of his boxers, he quickly covered it with his and stilled her movements. Lacing their fingers together, Nathan smiled reassuringly at her as he walked her backwards and sat her down on the edge of his bed. The flush that was colouring her skin gave away her nervousness and in an attempt to dissipate it, he tangled his fingers in the thick strands of her hair and tipped her head backwards, his lips finding hers immediately. Easing her further back until she was lying down, he lowered his body onto hers without breaking the kiss.

Haley revelled in the feel of Nathan's naked chest pressed firmly against hers as his mouth moved over hers, his tongue slipping between her lips to tangle with hers. Her hands roamed all over his back and shoulders, feeling the muscles sliding beneath his warm skin.

Breaking the kiss, he buried his face in her neck and breathed in her scent for a moment before pushing up onto his forearms and looking into her eyes, their foreheads resting together. His smile matched the one she was wearing and he couldn't remember a time he had felt happier or more relaxed.

"You feel so good," he whispered against her lips before kissing them again, his touch maddeningly light as he trailed his forefinger in the valley between her breasts.

She couldn't speak. Her gaze was locked on his as he watched her intently but eventually the sensations became so strong that she couldn't help close her eyes, her head tipping further back as he pressed kisses along her throat and neck, shifting his position so he could cover even more of her.

"N-Nathan…"

"Are you okay?" he immediately asked.

Haley nodded. "Uh huh… Don't stop…" Her skin felt electrified and was tingling in all the places that Nathan's fingers and lips touched. Reaching a hand behind her, she grabbed a fistful of pillow, clenching it tightly as the sensations threatened to overcome her. When he moved up her body and his lips fused with hers again, she wrapped her legs around his hips, wanting to feel him as close to her as she could.

Cupping his face between her palms, she shyly whispered, "I-I want you, Nathan. I need you." The smile he gave her melted her into a puddle and she pressed her mouth to his urgently, kissing him with everything within her. She practically purred when she felt his long, talented fingers trail down her stomach and slide beneath the already opened waistband of her jeans.

Nathan watched her slowly come undone as he continued to touch her and after several minutes had passed, he began removing the remainder of her clothing followed by his own. He couldn't tear his eyes off of her and the picture she made lying on his bed, her hair fanned out behind her on his pillow. His fingers were literally burning with the need to touch her and he gave in to it.

Haley forced herself to keep her eyes on him as he settled himself on top of her and when he smiled at her, she released the breath she hadn't realised she was holding. Their lips met in a series of soft, fleeting kisses before the passion once again took over and they began devouring each other, sucking on each other's tongues and nibbling on lips. She could feel a certain part of him pressing against her and while she still felt nervous and apprehensive, she also felt exhilarated and couldn't wait for them to take that final step.

She mewled against his mouth when she felt his fingers stroke her intimately and she involuntarily began undulating her hips, wanting more of the delicious friction she was experiencing. Her head tossed on the pillow while her fingers clenched his shoulders, sliding along the smooth, sweat-slicked skin.

"Please…" she begged, needing and wanting more.

Dropping another kiss onto her lips, Nathan stretched and reached out his hand to his nightstand, opening its drawer and fumbling around inside it. He silently cursed when he came up empty.

"Nathan?"

Sighing loudly, his shoulders slumped dejectedly, he looked into her pretty face and told her the bad news. "I haven't got any protection. I-I'm sorry, Hales. I wasn't expecting _this_," he said gesturing between them, "to be happening…at least not yet. I'm so sorry."

Haley trailed her fingers along his cheek. "It's okay, Nathan. I'm--"

"No, it's not okay. I wanted this to be special and now it's spoiled… It's just, I, uh, I never bring anyone back here."

Her eyes widened and she regarded him curiously. "But this is your home."

"Exactly," he told her. "It's my home, my refuge and I wanted to keep it that way." Touching his forehead to hers, he rubbed his nose against hers and continued, "The women I dated…I told you they were just that, just dates and, uh…"

"Sex," she finished for him."

"Yeah," he answered sheepishly. "It either happened at their place or in hotels… I never brought them back here. I know it probably makes me sound like a bastard but--"

"No, it doesn't. It actually makes sense. And, if anything, it makes what's happening between us even more special. That you would open up your home to me and make me feel so welcome. I love you even more for that, Nathan."

Kissing her mouth for what felt like an age, he finally drew back and gave her the biggest smile. "God, how did I get so lucky? Although the fact that I've got you in my bed completely naked and I've got no condoms doesn't make me feel that lucky at this particular moment in time," he half-kidded.

Giggling, Haley wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down to her, parting her legs so he could fit between them more comfortably and hooking them around his hips.

"Hales…"

With her mouth right by his ear, she whispered, "What would you say if I told you I was on the pill?"

Lifting himself up so he could look into his eyes, he stared at her hopefully. "Are you serious?"

She nodded. "Yeah. I'm, uh, on it to help regulate my cycle. You've always been careful…before, I mean?"

"Always," he stated. "I've never taken any chances."

"Good," she replied, her smile widening as the heel of her foot stroked up and down the back of his thigh.

"Are you sure? As much as it pains me to say it, I'm willing to wait. I don't want to push you into anything you're not ready for or make you feel like you have to do this tonight."

"I know and you're not pushing me into anything. I want this…I want you." Her skin flushed as she confessed, "I-I never thought I'd want anyone as much as I want you, Nathan."

Before she could say anything else, Nathan's mouth had seized hers and he was kissing her furiously, pouring every little ounce of love and affection he felt for her into it. His hands touched every inch of her that was within his reach and she did the same to him and when he eventually felt that she was completely ready, they took that final step together and became as one.

* * *

They lay together in comfortable silence, basking in the afterglow of their lovemaking, their bodies entwined as they both wanted and needed to feel the other's touch and warmth.

"How are you feeling?" Nathan asked quietly, his arm was wrapped around Haley's shoulder and his fingers were trailing up and down her bare arm.

"I'm fine," she replied, glancing up at him shyly. Her face felt warm and she was sure she was blushing yet again.

"Yeah," he drawled before adding, "You definitely are."

"Nathan!"

"What? I'm just agreeing with you, Hales." His arm pulled her even closer as he leaned down and pressed a kiss to the top of her head which was resting upon his chest.

"Was I--"

"You were amazing," he quickly interrupted. "It's…it's never felt like that for me before."

"Like what?"

"I don't know… I felt like we were completely connected or something. Maybe that sounds a bit cheesy; I'm not always that great at putting things into words," he admitted.

"It doesn't sound cheesy at all." Shifting her position, she propped herself up on her elbow and looked into his face which was turned towards hers. "What you said about us being connected? That's what it felt like for me, too. I could feel your heartbeat in time with mine…same as with your breathing. It was like we were in sync or something." Her blush intensified and she looked away. "God, now who sounds cheesy, huh?"

Wrapping his hand behind her neck, Nathan pulled her head down towards his and he met her lips and kissed her softly. "Well, we're a perfect match then. We can just be a cheesy old couple."

"Hey, less of the old. Well, for me anyway," she teased, squealing when he suddenly turned over and pinned her down with his weight. "Nathan!"

"I'm going to make you pay for that," he told her, his eyebrows wiggling suggestively which made her break out into laughter, the sound of it making his heart feel light as a feather.

"You promise?"

"Hell yeah," he replied, leaning down to take her lips in another kiss.

The intensity of it quickly grew to epic proportions and all that could be heard for the remainder of the night was the sound of harsh, panting breaths and deep, long drawn out moans which, much later on, once again turned into the sound of light, tuneful laughter as the young couple made the most of their first proper night together as husband and wife.


	20. Chapter Twenty

**Author's Notes:** Thanks so much for all of your wonderful reviews. I'm really happy you enjoyed the last chapter and I hope this next one is as well received.

By the way, I'm sorry for the delay in posting it. Between writing my recent oneshots and real life getting in the way, things have been a bit hectic.

* * *

**Chapter Twenty**

"Coffee?" Haley asked as she entered their bedroom carrying two mugs.

Rolling over onto his back and propping himself up against the pillows, Nathan smiled when he saw her standing at the foot of the bed wearing his discarded shirt which looked incredible on her, hitting her at mid-thigh and showing off her shapely legs perfectly. Reaching out his hand, he took the offered mug from her. "Thanks, baby."

She leaned forward and planted a light kiss onto his lips, giggling against them when his free hand cupped the back of her head and kept her firmly in place. "Nathan! We're going to spill our coffee and I'd much rather spend our morning in bed than take a trip to the hospital because we've burned ourselves."

Placing his cup on the nightstand and then doing the same with hers, he pulled her on top of him and laced his fingers together just above her butt, seizing her mouth in a sizzling kiss before she could say another word.

Haley felt her heart speed up as she gave herself over to the wonderful sensations his mouth was eliciting from her and without breaking the kiss, she managed to move so that she was straddling his waist, her upper body still pressed against his. She moaned when Nathan's hands slid beneath her T-shirt and stroked everywhere he could reach and drawing back from him, she immediately gripped the hem of the fabric and pulled it up and over her head. Her skin felt hot and she knew she was probably blushing and, in the back of her mind, she wondered if and when that would ever change.

Flipping her over onto her back, Nathan held himself up above her on his forearms and smiled down at her. How did he ever get so lucky, he couldn't help asking himself. The way she licked and then bit her bottom lip sent a jolt through him and closing the small gap between them, he again seized her lips.

When they eventually drew apart long minutes later, they were breathing heavily, their eyes locked on each other's as the flirty banter disappeared and the air around them seemed to crackle and spark.

"I can't get enough of you," he whispered against her lips before kissing her once more. His lips kissed a path from her mouth, down her throat until they arrived at the base of her neck where he sucked furiously on a patch of her skin determined to leave his mark, feeling an almost possessive need to brand her.

"I can't either," Haley replied in kind, practically purring at the feel of what his mouth was currently doing to her. Her fingers travelled the expanse of his back and shoulders, gliding along his warm skin, her nails digging in when he shifted lower and began sucking on her collarbone.

Nathan was sliding further down when he suddenly heard a low rumbling noise and glancing up at her, he saw her face turn pink.

"Sorry," she muttered, "I should've grabbed something to eat when I was downstairs but…"

"But?"

"I, uh, was in a hurry to get back to you," she confessed shyly.

Bracing his weight on his forearms, he smiled as he looked down at her. He felt his body grow warmer still at hearing her words and he couldn't resist the call of her lips a second longer. The kiss was soft and sweet yet full of passion as he threw himself headlong into it. He'd never met anyone quite like her before and he knew without a shadow of a doubt that he never would again. She was definitely one of a kind.

Breaking the kiss, he nuzzled his face against her throat, breathing in her scent. "How about we go downstairs and get something to eat?"

"Good idea," Haley answered. "And I think it's my turn to make it."

"You don't have to cook something, we could just have cereal or toast. I mean, that way we get to come back to bed that much faster," he teased.

"There is that, I suppose," she agreed, running her fingers up and down his back.

Hearing her tummy rumble again, Nathan rubbed his nose against hers, dropping a light kiss onto her lips before reluctantly pushing himself up and off of her body. "C'mon, the sooner we eat, the sooner we get back here and can work on burning those calories off."

"Oh, and there was me about to suggest we go for a jog afterwards," she joked. Leaning over the side of the bed, she retrieved the discarded T-shirt she had worn before and slipped it over her head while Nathan pulled on a pair of pajama pants. Seeing him walking over to their bedroom door, she asked, "You're not going to put on a T-shirt?"

Giving her a sexy smirk, he shook his head. "Nope. Why? Is that going to be a problem for you, honey?"

Haley shook her head and did her best to keep a straight face. "No, no problem at all."

Holding out his hand to her, he laughed as he spoke, "We'll just have to see about that."

"Is that so?" she said, slipping her hand into his.

Instead of answering her verbally, Nathan lowered his head to hers and suckled on her plump bottom lip, repeating the action on the upper one after a few moments before finally pulling back without properly kissing her. Her breathing was heavier, more ragged and he couldn't help smiling in satisfaction. "Yeah, I'd definitely say so."

His words seemed to bring her out of her sudden daze and she gave herself a mental shake as she saw the smug grin stretched across his face. He looked so cute and…happy and she felt a warm sense of pride knowing that she was, at least in part, responsible for the latter. "You think you're so good, don't you?"

"Think? I know I'm good and I think I just proved it to you, Hales."

Stretching up onto her tiptoes, she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed along his jaw. "I think I need a little more proof," she whispered into his ear before pulling back and running out of the room giggling, leaving a slightly bewildered Nathan standing in their bedroom.

"I'm going to get you for that," he called out as he chased after her.

* * *

"So, have you thought any more about going back to college?" Nathan asked after swallowing the last bite of the French toast Haley had made for the both of them.

"I think I might've missed the deadline for enrolling," she told him sadly. "With everything that's happened lately, I'd sort of forgotten about it."

"There's no harm in finding out though." He smiled warmly at her.

Returning his smile, she nodded. "I know and I'll do it first thing Monday morning."

"Good. I'd hate for you to be bored out of your mind here while I'm at the office all day."

"Oh, I don't know about that," she teased. "I could always fill my days with shopping sprees and watching daytime soaps and chat shows."

Nathan laughed. "Somehow I don't see you as that type."

"Really? And what type do you see me as?"

Leaning in close to her, he whispered into her ear, "You're exactly my type."

Haley blushed at his words and turning her face slightly, she pressed her lips against his. One hand came up to stroke against his stubble-roughened cheek as she deepened the kiss, her tongue sliding inside his mouth where she could taste the sweetness of the maple syrup he had poured over his breakfast.

"You're my type, too," she told him in a breathless whisper after the kiss had finally ended.

He was practically beaming at hearing her words and pushing his stool back, he stood up and took Haley's hand in his. "You up for a workout?" he asked, giving her a salacious wink that had her breaking out into a fit of laughter.

"Is that what they're calling it these days?" Interlacing their fingers together, she gave his hand a gentle squeeze before being the one to lead him out of the kitchen and up the stairs.

"What about the dishes?" he joked.

"Well, I can go back and do them now if you'd prefer."

Instead of answering her, he suddenly lifted her up, placing her over his shoulder in a fireman's lift which had her squealing in surprise.

"Nathan!"

"The dishes can wait," he said as he took the stairs two at a time, holding on tightly to the precious cargo he was carrying.

"Thank god for that," she said before swatting his butt with her hand.

"Hey!"

"Sorry," she choked out before breaking out into a fit of giggles.

"I'll give you sorry," Nathan told her as he deposited her onto their bed, watching with hungry eyes as she pulled off the T-shirt she was wearing and then laid back amongst the mountain of pillows.

She felt herself grow warm all over at his approving gaze and she bit her lip in an attempt to keep from moaning when he shucked off his pajama pants. The moan couldn't be held back though when he climbed on top of her and his body was pressed flush against her own. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she pulled him down so he was pressing her even further into the soft mattress beneath them and she sighed into his mouth when he kissed her again.

"I love you so much," Haley murmured against his cheek as she breathed in much needed air once the kiss had ended.

"I love you, too… I never thought I'd feel this way about anyone," he told her honestly as he looked down at her beautiful face. "I-I sometimes think that you're too good for me, Hales. That you deserve someone better and—"

"No!" she interrupted, her tone firm. "We're good for each other." She kissed him urgently, reinforcing what she had just said but this time without words, before retreating and confessing something to him, something she had never shared with anyone else. "When I was younger, I used to dream about what my wedding day would be like and I used to try and picture the guy I'd marry. In all of the dreams I had over the years, I can honestly say I never felt for him what I feel for you."

"Haley…"

"I know I'm young, Nathan, and that I'm not as experienced as you or the other women you've been with but… I love you so much and I can't imagine feeling this way about anyone else." She smiled through the tears that had filled her eyes as she tried to lighten the mood by adding, "You've pretty much ruined me for any other guy."

Cupping her face between his palms, he held her steady as he looked deep into her warm, chocolate brown eyes. "Good," he choked out. The sense of jealousy he felt at the mere thought of any other man touching her was overwhelming. Lowering his head, he seized her lips in a scorching hot kiss, his tongue slipping into her mouth to tangle wetly with hers. The feel of her fingers threading through his hair and her blunt nails raking across his scalp was sending delicious shivers up and down his spine.

He slid his hands down from her face, touching and caressing every part of her that was within reach and he couldn't get enough of the soft moans and gasps he was eliciting from her.

The only thought in his head when he finally entered her was: home.

* * *

Monday morning came around much too quickly for the young couple who, much to their reluctance given the wonderful weekend they had spent together, were up bright and early.

Sitting on the countertop in the bathroom, Haley smiled at her husband who was standing in front of her, shaving foam covering half of his face while he ran a razor over it. Holding out her hand, she gestured for him to give her the instrument and she chuckled at his slight hesitation.

"C'mon, Nathan, you know I'll be careful."

Handing it over, Nathan smirked and placed both of his hands on her warm upper thighs, pushing the shirt of his she was wearing up even higher.

"Be careful with those hands, buddy, unless you want me to cut you."

His hands stilled except for the occasional movement when he felt the need to feel her silky soft skin more fully. He couldn't help smiling at the look of utter concentration on her face as she shaved him. When she paused to dip the razor into the basin to rinse off the collected foam, he took the opportunity of letting his hands roam even higher, fingering the edge of her lace-trimmed, silk panties when they came into contact with the fabric.

Haley sucked in a breath. "Okay, you need to stop that right now if you don't want me to nick you," she told him as she brought the razor up to his face again.

Nathan grinned but capitulated with her request and went back to stroking her upper thighs, revelling in the softness of her skin. He felt the urge to smile when she poked her tongue out as she focused on the task in hand. Whatever she did, she always looked cute doing it, not to mention hot as hell. His hand snaked around from her waist to her butt and he kneaded her curvy behind through her panties.

"Hey!"

"What?"

The innocent look on his face made her laugh. "Don't give me that look, Scott."

"And what look might that be?"

"The butter wouldn't melt look because you know it doesn't work on me."

"Really? 'Cause if I remember correctly that look worked pretty well all weekend and once this morn—"

"Yeah, yeah," Haley interrupted. "For your information, I was just letting you think it worked."

Feigning shock and hurt, he took a step back and placed a hand on his chest over his heart. "Damn, that hurt, Hales."

Tilting her head to one side, she willed herself not to laugh at his antics while, at the same time, loving his playfulness. "Aww, do you want me to make it better?"

"I don't know. It depends on what you have in mind," he told her, waggling his eyebrows suggestively.

"You're going to be late for work," she observed while dropping the razor into the sink again and wrapping her arms around his neck.

"I guess it's a good thing I'm the boss, then." Pulling her towards him, he directed her to wrap her legs around his hips which she did and a second later he was carrying her back into their bedroom. God only knew how he was going to get through a whole day without her and as their bodies again became one, he wondered if this feeling, this need for her, would ever subside. Somehow he didn't think so.


	21. Chapter TwentyOne

**Author's Notes:** Firstly, I'm so sorry for the delay in getting this chapter posted. Unfortunately, things are incredibly hectic for me right now in real life and I'm not online as much as I usually am. This, most likely, is going to be the last update for quite a while as the next chapter isn't finished but it has been started which is something.

Thank you so much for all of the reviews you gave me for the last part; I'm really glad you enjoyed it.

**Heather:** In answer to your question, the drama is just about to begin for our favourite couple.

Hope you enjoy the new chapter. :)

* * *

**Chapter Twenty-One**

_A month later…_

"Mr Scott, your mother is on line one?"

Nathan internally groaned at his PA's words on the other end of the line. Great, just what he needed today. "Thanks, Wendy, you can put her through." He took a deep breath and waited for the sound of the call connecting before speaking "Mom?"

"Nathan… It's so good to hear your voice."

"What can I do for you? I'm pretty busy so I haven't got much time to—"

"I just wanted to wish you a Happy Birthday," Deb interrupted. "I was hoping you'd come home considering it's your thirtieth but I guess _she's_ wanting to keep you all to herself."

Nathan sighed. And there it was. Not even a minute into the conversation and she had to make a dig at his wife. "This _is_ my home, Mom, and it has been for a long time, long before I even met Haley. And actually what you said about her is wrong. She suggested we come back there for my birthday so I could celebrate it with my family but I told her I wanted to stay here and celebrate it with her since she's my family, too now."

"We're your family, Nathan… Your blood family. What about Lucas and your Uncle Keith and Aunt Karen? I mean—"

"I've already spoken to them and thanked them for the gifts they sent and they're cool with me not coming back right now. I'm pretty sure they understand my reasons," he said pointedly.

"Were you even going to call me?" Deb asked, her voice somewhat shaky.

"Don't act like the injured party here, Mom. You're the one who pushed me away when you went behind my back like that and hired someone to investigate Haley. Oh, and let's not forget how you decided you'd be the one to call her parents and tell them about our marriage."

"I don't trust her and neither should you," she blurted out, the earlier shakiness in her voice having now completely disappeared.

"Here we go again," he mumbled loud enough for her hear. "I trust Haley—"

"Oh, please! You've known her all of five minutes!"

Nathan shook his head as he listened to his mother listing all of the reasons why he shouldn't trust Haley. Yeah, it looked like today was going to be yet another _great_ birthday thanks to one of his parents. He could feel a headache forming and he rubbed his forehead, sighing under his breath.

"…and I hope you're using protection bec—"

"I'm sorry but what's that got to do with you?" he interrupted as soon as her words had registered.

"It's obvious she's going to try and get herself pregnant. Please, Nathan, be sensible here. If she has a child with you, then she'll be entitled to more of your money when she divorces you and, mark my words, that will happen. For all you know, while you're out at work she could be sleeping around and—"

"That's enough!" he shouted.

"Nathan, I'm only trying to—"

"What, look out for me? 'Cause you're doing such a great job of it. Look, it's too late and, anyway, you're way off base with everything you're saying. If I didn't know better, I'd swear you were pill popping again."

"How dare you? You know how long I've been clean…"

"Yeah, I know," he replied tiredly. "I'm sorry for saying that but that's all I'm sorry for. Like I said before, unless and until you can accept Haley as my wife, then I don't want anything to do with you. I can't keep doing this with you, Mom… I love her and I trust her; I trust her more than I've ever trusted anyone with the exception of Luke and I'm not going to lose her. All this crap you keep spouting… not one bit of it is true and if you opened your eyes, you'd see that. You liked Haley before I met her so—"

"That's before I realised what a sneaky little gold-digger she is and—"

Without another word, Nathan slammed down the receiver and released a heavy sigh. He felt like screaming and he definitely needed a drink. Pushing his chair back, he went over to the small drinks cabinet he had in the corner of his office and poured himself a large scotch despite the early hour. He was just about to down it when an idea popped into his head and he put the glass down. Turning off his computer and picking up his briefcase, he walked out of his office and stopped at his PA's desk.

"I'm taking the rest of the day off, Wendy."

The older woman smiled at him and asked, "Was the phone call that bad?"

"Worse," he replied, smiling back at her. "There shouldn't be any problems but if anything urgent comes up, Rick should be able to handle it."

Wendy nodded. "Enjoy your weekend… Oh, and your birthday."

"Thanks. See you on Monday."

When he was sitting in his car several minutes later, he leaned back against the headrest and closed his eyes. Why couldn't his mother have wished him a Happy Birthday and left it at that instead of badmouthing Haley?

Today had begun so well; waking up his wife in his – and her – favourite way and getting his birthday off to a terrific start. He really hadn't wanted to go into work but he'd had a couple of important phone calls he needed to make so he'd had no choice but now, after having spoken to his mother… He wished he'd stayed at home with Haley after all. God, he hated that she could still make him feel this way and to think he'd always thought his dad to be the worst out of the pair of them.

Shaking his head to clear it of the negative thoughts of his parents, he slid the key into the ignition and turned it. Knowing he would soon be seeing Haley, his mood immediately lifted and a smile tugged at the corners of his lips as he began the drive home.

* * *

Haley was just finishing setting the table when she thought she heard the sound of a key in the front door and she froze. She'd been planning Nathan's surprise ever since he'd told her they'd be staying in Chicago for his birthday and so rushing out of the dining room, she pulled the door closed behind her and went to find him.

"Hey, baby," Nathan said, smiling at her when she came into view. Placing his briefcase on the table by the front door and shrugging off his jacket and loosening his tie, he closed the short distance between them. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her in tight to his body, lowering his head so he could feel her soft lips against his.

She smiled against his mouth, her arms coming up to twine around his neck. Reluctantly drawing back from him, Haley giggled at the way his lips seemed to follow her and she couldn't resist leaning in and kissing him again. "How come you're home so early?" she asked several moments later when the need for air had become too strong to ignore and she'd broken the kiss.

He shrugged his shoulders. The last thing he wanted was to tell her the real reason he'd ditched work since he knew she'd somehow feel responsible when the blame was firmly fixed on his mother's shoulders. "I wanted to spend the rest of the day with you," he finally replied.

Tilting her head to one side, Haley looked into his beautiful blue eyes and she was pretty sure he wasn't being entirely honest with her but she didn't know whether to leave the matter or push a little. "Okay."

"Only okay… That kind of hurts, Hales," he teased.

Laughing, she shook her head. "I didn't mean it in a bad way. I just… well, you kind of interrupted my plans for the day."

"Oh yeah? And what plans might those be?"

"Now that would be telling."

"I'll bet I can get you to reveal your secrets to me," he whispered huskily into her ear as his hands slipped beneath the yellow jersey vest top she was wearing. His fingers traced idle shapes and patterns into her skin and he felt her shiver against him.

"Uh huh… I bet you could, too."

"So, c'mon, what were your plans?" He began kissing a path from her ear down to the base of her neck while one of his hands played with the clasp of her bra.

"You really expect me to answer you while you're doing that?" she asked, gasping when he grazed his teeth along her skin.

Nathan laughed and gave her waist a gentle squeeze before releasing her so she could concentrate. "Sorry," he said, though his tone made it clear he wasn't sorry at all.

"I'm sure," she remarked, one eyebrow raised. Taking his hand in hers, Haley led him into the living room and pushed him down onto the couch, making sure she wasn't in grabbing distance since she knew only too well he'd try and get her onto his lap.

"Why don't you come over here?" he said, patting his lap, his smirk turning into a full blown smile which he could see had her wavering.

"I think I'll stay over here."

"You sure? I think you'll find it more… comfortable."

"Nathan…"

"Okay, you win."

"Good. Now, you stay in here… Watch some TV or play a video game, but you're not to come into the kitchen or the dining room. If you need a drink or something, give me a shout but don't move."

"Wow, you're all kinds of sexy when you're bossy," he told her, loving the rosy blush that coloured her cheeks and he couldn't help teasing her a little more. "Do I need to ask permission if I need the bathroom?"

"Listen, birthday boy…"

Raising in hands in surrender, he started laughing and mumbled, "Sorry," which he so wasn't. He loved riling her up and reaping the benefits.

"Yeah, you really sound it," she said, joining in with his laughter. "Okay, I've got things to be getting on with so you stay here until I tell you otherwise. Got it?"

"Yes, Ma'am."

Pointing her finger at him, she headed towards the door but couldn't resist leaning down and pressing a kiss to his lips, her hand cupping his cheek. "Be good and no trying to find out what I'm doing."

"I won't," he promised, brushing his lips against hers, his fingers playing with the ends of her ponytail. "I can't wait to find out what you're up to…" His tone grew a bit more serious as he said, "Hey, I know I've said it already but thanks for making today special, Hales. I really appreciate it."

"You don't have to thank me, Nathan, but you're welcome. I just hope you like what I've got planned."

"I'm going to love it," he reassured her.

Giving him one final kiss, Haley straightened up, her fingers lingering on his cheek for a brief moment. "Remember, if you need anything, call me and I'll get it for you."

"Better be careful. I might just get used to having you waiting on me hand and foot."

"Today's the one and only day that'll be happening so you won't have a chance to get used to it," she told him, patting him on the shoulder and quickly moving out of his way before he had a chance to grab her and delay her any further.

Nathan chuckled, shaking his head, as he watched her practically run out of the room and grabbing the remote control off of the coffee table, he switched on the TV and flicked between channels, hoping to find something that'd keep him occupied since Haley was too busy to help him out with that.

Kicking off his shoes and removing his tie, he undid the top two buttons of his shirt before lying down on the couch. As his eyes focused on the TV screen, his mind wandered and he couldn't help thinking back to the conversation he'd had with his mother a short while ago. He didn't understand what her deal was about him being married to Haley. She was hands down the sweetest, most generous person he'd ever met and while he could understand her, and others, being shocked at how quickly he'd gotten married, he genuinely thought they'd be happy that he'd found someone like her instead of marrying one of the women he'd previously been associated with. Hell, he could barely stand to be around some of them for the length of a date let alone being tied to them for the rest of his life.

Like he'd told Haley, he never thought he'd ever get married but now… being married to her, he could honestly say he loved it. He loved waking up with her and he loved falling asleep with her every night, their bodies cuddled together, the scent of her hair and her skin filling his senses. If he lost her… God, just the thought had him breaking out into a cold sweat. He couldn't lose her… he wouldn't and especially not because of his interfering mother. A woman who had handed him over to his father, putting her work before him and his welfare. Even when as a little boy he'd begged her to come home, telling her how his father treated him when she wasn't there… she hadn't come and he'd had to put up with his dad taking out his frustrations and anger on him.

Closing his eyes, Nathan took a long, deep breath before blowing it out slowly. His hands, which had started to clench into fists, relaxed and he flexed his fingers, his eyes landing on the white gold band he wore.

"Wow, that was a big sigh," Haley said as she entered the living room again.

Tipping his head back against the armrest, he looked up at her. "Hey, you all finished?"

"Uh huh, although I still don't want you in the kitchen," she told him, kneeling down beside the couch and running her fingers through his thick hair.

"No problem since I was thinking we could go upstairs and make use of another room," he told her, wiggling his eyebrows.

"Oh, really? Hmm, I wonder what room that might be."

Pushing himself up into a sitting position, Nathan got up from the couch as Haley also stood up, their hands automatically intertwining. "I think you know," he told her in a husky whisper, his face slowly inching towards hers.

She cupped the back of his head with her free hand, her fingers idly stroking over the nape of his neck, loving the way he shivered. Feeling how responsive he was to her touch was… God, it was a total turn on. Her tongue curled around his, coaxing it into her own mouth and the only sounds that filled the room were those of harsh, panting breaths.

Giving his hand a gentle squeeze, Haley broke the kiss and pulled him towards the stairs. "C'mon…"

"Did I tell you how sexy you are when you're bossing me around?"

Throwing him a look over her shoulder, she gave him a saucy smile. "Yeah, I think you might've mentioned it."

"Last one up the stairs has to do the dishes tonight," he told her as he released her hand and pushed in front of her, taking the stairs two at a time.

"Hey! That's not fair! Your legs are longer than mine," she called out as she quickened her pace.

"It's not my fault I'm tall and you're… not," he replied, his smirk fully in place.

"You know, I think I've got some things I need to check on downstairs." She made to turn around and go back down but before she could take a step, Nathan's arm was hooked around her waist and he'd pulled her into him.

"You're not going anywhere." Fusing their lips together, he kissed her passionately, his hands gripping tightly to her hips as he pressed his body flush against hers; letting her feel just how much he wanted her.

Without breaking the kiss, he walked them into their bedroom, his hands roaming all over her, and soon as they'd crossed the threshold he kicked the door closed.

* * *

"Now that's what I call a birthday present," Nathan said, his hands stroking up and down Haley's back as she collapsed on top of him completely spent.

Giggling, she blew a raspberry against his neck. "It was more of a mutual present…" she told him, kissing her way upwards until her lips found his again.

"Yeah, it was…" His fingers threaded through her auburn hair, holding her steady as he deepened the kiss, his tongue sliding into her mouth to join hers in another erotic dance, their moans echoing around the room.

"God, I love you…" Haley panted long minutes later when the kiss finally broke.

The smile stretched across his face. He didn't think he'd ever stop getting that little shiver that spread throughout his body whenever he heard her say those three words to him. "I love you, too, Haley."

Her smile matched his and she nuzzled her nose against his. "We need to go downstairs," she told him, pushing herself up so that she was now straddling his waist.

"Why? I'm very comfortable where I am, thanks," he said, thrusting his hips up slightly and grinning at the way her eyes automatically fluttered shut.

"Well, if you don't want your present…" she trailed off, her teeth biting into her bottom lip.

"I wouldn't say no to more of this present." He thrust his hips again and couldn't help but laugh when she glared at him.

"You need to stop that, Nathan!"

"Make me!" he challenged, reaching up and cupping her breast.

Covering his hand with her own, she reluctantly removed it and interlaced their fingers. "C'mon, please…" Her bottom lip jutted out and she gave him her best puppy dog expression, knowing it usually had him caving.

Tangling his fingers in her hair, he directed her mouth back to his and suckled her pouty bottom lip, releasing it with a pop a few seconds later. "That look isn't always going to work," he teased.

"Yeah? We'll have to see about that."

His fingers traced idle patterns across her back and he kissed his way from one shoulder to the other, sucking on her collarbone along the way. "You sure we have to go downstairs?"

The words were on the tip of her tongue to tell him no, that they should just stay where they were but, at the same time, she wanted him to see what she'd come up with for his birthday present.

"Feeling a little… conflicted, are we?"

Haley held on tightly to him as he planted open-mouthed kisses along her throat and she moaned loudly when he sucked on her chin. Tilting her head forward, she seized his lips in a hot, hungry kiss.

"We'd better get downstairs," he told her, repeating her earlier words to him, his lips curved up into his trademark smirk. "Please tell me we don't have to dress up or anything."

"No," she managed to choke out as he lowered his head and took her breast into his mouth.

"Do you want me to stop so we can go downstairs or—"

"Don't you dare stop!" she interrupted.

Laughing against her breast, he carefully flipped them over so that he was now on top and inching his way up her body, he made sure to rub against her. When he took her lips in another intense kiss, his laughter soon died away as he got lost in the feel and taste of her.

* * *

Nathan watched with hungry eyes from his place in bed, propped up against several pillows, as Haley slipped one of his T-shirts over her head, smoothing the fabric down over her soft curves. Her hair was in complete disarray from their earlier activities, her skin flushed while her lips were full and kiss-swollen… God, his girl was hot! His fingers were itching to grab her and pull her back into bed but he knew that'd have to wait until later as he hadn't eaten since early that morning and he knew she had to feel as hungry as he was right now.

"C'mon, Nathan, quit staring and get your cute ass moving," Haley told him, picking up his boxers from the floor and throwing them at him.

He reluctantly got out of bed and pulled on his underwear, grabbing a grey T-shirt from his dresser and putting that on as well. Taking her offered hand, he let her pull him out of the room and they made their way downstairs and into the dining room.

"Happy Birthday, Nathan." Her skin still had a light blush to it and she nervously shifted on her feet.

Nathan's mouth fell open as he took in the table which was set for two. A small vase of fresh flowers sat in the middle with two candlesticks either side which had yet to be lit.

"I know it's not much but—"

"It's perfect, Haley. Thank you." Wrapping his arms around her, he hugged her tightly, burying his nose into her hair which smelled faintly of her cherry-vanilla shampoo.

"You're welcome," she said, hugging him back. "Okay, you sit down and I'll start bringing in the food. By the way, if anything's dried out it's your fault for not wanting to come down here earlier," she teased.

"Don't worry, you won't hear any complaining from me," he quipped, giving her a wink.

"Good."

His eyes widened as Haley carried in more and more food but he definitely noticed the theme and he laughed. After lighting the candles, he went over to the nearby stereo and slipped one of Haley's CDs into it before calling out to her, "Do you need any help in there?"

"No thanks. You could pour the wine though," she called back.

Opening the bottle of white wine already on the table, he poured some into both of their glasses but he decided to wait for her before having some. When she entered the room a few minutes later, he stood up and took the salad bowl from her and placed it onto the table once she'd made some room for it. It looked like they'd be having leftovers for a good few days.

"Do you think we've got enough food?" he teased.

Haley giggled. "Yeah, I think I might've gone a little overboard but at least we don't have to worry about cooking for a few days."

"Very true and the time we don't have to waste in the kitchen will be put to extremely good use, I can assure you."

"Hmm, I bet." Picking up her glass, she held it out in front of her. "Happy 30th Birthday, Nathan."

Smiling at her, he picked up his own glass and lightly clinked it against hers before they both took a drink of the chilled liquid. "Thanks, Hales. And thank you for all of this… Spending today with you like this… it's exactly what I wanted. Well, except for the going into work part and… uh, wasting those few hours there," he told her.

Haley noticed a slight change in his voice before he went back to smiling at her and, not for the first time that day, she felt as if he was hiding something. She opened her mouth to ask him about it but he beat her to it when he again spoke.

"I'm sensing a theme here with the food though."

"Oh yeah?" she said, her lips curving up into a smirk.

"Everything's cold," he observed. "You know, I don't think I've seen so many different types of salad."

Laughing, she replied, "I did have a different menu planned but then this idea popped into my head and since I know how… um, hands-y you can be, I figured going with a cold menu might be the best option."

"Yeah, and you weren't wrong. I mean, if you'd gone with a hot menu it'd pretty much all be ruined by now."

"It wouldn't have all been your fault… I was the one practically dragging you upstairs."

"Believe me, babe; no dragging was required. I was definitely ready and willing."

"Mmm, you proved that… multiple times," she said, her face heating up as she said the words.

Leaning towards her, he softly kissed her lips. "I love it when you blush."

"I think you've said that before," she whispered, her fingers trailing over his cheekbone.

Popping another kiss on her lips, he sat back in his chair and started digging into the mountain of food she'd prepared. "Yeah, and I don't think it'll be the last time you'll be hearing me say it."

"Me either… Now c'mon, let's start eating before this gets cold," she joked, loving the sound of his laughter and the way he was looking at her.

* * *

"That was amazing, Hales," he told her, putting his fork down onto his empty plate and leaning back in his chair. "I don't think I could eat another thing though."

"Oh… I take it you don't want any birthday cake, then?"

"Cake? You didn't say there was cake."

"It's your birthday, Nathan, so of course there's going to be cake," she told him as she got up out of her seat and started to clear away the dishes. "I was going to buy one but I wasn't sure what your favourite was so I baked one. If you don't like it we can buy something when we next go out or—"

"Haley," he interrupted, knowing that if he didn't stop her now, she could ramble on forever working herself up into more of a state. "I love that you made me a birthday cake."

"Really?" she asked shyly.

"Really. When I was little, practically every birthday cake I had was bought from a store. The only homemade cakes I ever had were ones that Karen made."

"I'm not sure that mine will compare to Karen's but it won't kill you," she teased.

"Good to know," he said, pushing his chair back and helping her clear the table.

"Nope, you sit down, Mister, and leave all this to me."

"Haley, I—"

"It's your birthday and seeing as I didn't actually buy you anything…"

"You didn't?" he asked, trying to hide his disappointment.

Walking around the table, she twined her arms around his neck and pushing herself up onto her toes, she nuzzled his nose with hers. "I wasn't sure what to buy you," she admitted. "We still don't know each other all that well and I spent hours walking in and out of stores and searching online for something… anything that I thought you'd like but you're a pretty hard person to buy for. I mean, you have practically everything a guy could want so I ended up calling Lucas and he was a fat lot of good."

Nathan burst out laughing at that. "Yeah, he's kind of useless."

"Anyway, I thought we could go shopping together and you pick out something you really want or need and I could get it for you and, in the meantime…" Haley trailed off.

"In the meantime what?"

"One of the stores I went into just happened to be Victoria's Secret and I bought something which, while I'll be the one wearing it—"

"Thank God for that," he retorted.

"It's something I think you'll really like."

"Oh, I bet I will." Ducking his head, he brushed his lips over hers once… twice before slanting his head and deepening the kiss. His hands wadded the thin cotton T-shirt she wore, his fingers slipping beneath the fabric to glide across her bare back. "Let's go upstairs and you can model it for me."

"What about the cake?"

"We'll take it with us."

"Okay," she mumbled, moaning into his mouth when he kissed her again and she gasped when he suddenly hoisted her up, her legs instinctively wrapping around his hips.

By the time the doorbell sounded several minutes later, Nathan had her pressed up against the nearest wall, his hands cupping and kneading her breasts beneath her T-shirt which, if she guessed correctly, wasn't going to be staying on for much longer.

"N-Nathan… There's… Ohhh God… someone at the door." He was sucking furiously on her neck, no inch of space between their bodies as he rocked his hips into hers, letting her feel just how aroused he was right now.

"They'll go away in a minute," he murmured, his teeth grazing the sensitive column of her neck which had her gripping his shoulders even harder.

"I don't think they're going," she told him when the doorbell kept sounding.

"Damnit! I rarely have visitors here so who the hell could that be?" Resting his forehead against hers, he closed his eyes and tried to get his breathing under control. He felt her gentle fingers caressing his cheek and he leaned into her touch.

"You get the door and I'll get the cake ready for us to take upstairs," she said, suckling his top lip into her mouth and then repeating the motion with the bottom one.

"We could just ignore it," he suggested.

Hearing the chimes yet again, Haley sighed. "I don't think we can. Whoever that is seems determined to see you."

"Fine," he agreed. "Promise me though that we're not done celebrating."

Smiling at him, she replied, "Not by a long shot, honey. Now, answer the door and see if you can get rid of whoever's decided to interrupt our perfect evening."

Kissing her one last time, he lowered her back down and smiled as he watched her head into the kitchen, tugging her T-shirt down as she went. Taking a deep breath, he walked towards the front door and looked through the spy-hole; he couldn't see anyone and he was just about to walk back to Haley, thinking that the person must have left, when the doorbell chimed again, causing him to curse under his breath.

Opening the door, his mouth dropped to his chest as the last person he thought he'd see any time soon was standing right there on his doorstep. "Mom?"

"Hello, Nathan. Seeing as you won't come home for your birthday, I thought I'd come to you," Deb said, smiling broadly at her son and seemingly ignoring the fact they had argued earlier that day. "Aren't you going to invite me in?"


	22. Chapter TwentyTwo

**Author's Notes:** Thank you so much for all of your wonderful reviews. I'm so glad you enjoyed the last chapter and I hope this new one will be just as popular.

* * *

**Chapter Twenty-Two**

Nathan stood frozen to the spot as he stared at his mother. Never in a million years would he have guessed she'd just turn up unannounced, especially given how their telephone conversation earlier that day had gone. "What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to see you," Deb told him. "Look, I'm sorry about what happened earlier… I shouldn't have said those things and I hated what happened."

"Yeah?" he asked, running a hand through his hair. "You could've fooled me, Mom."

"I don't blame you for still being angry and upset; the things I said were uncalled for and that's why I've come here to see you. I want to make amends and try to put all this unpleasantness behind us."

"By unpleasantness you mean Haley, right?"

"You said it," the blonde quietly mumbled under her breath. "I mean the awful things I said. I'm not expecting you to just forgive and forget but doesn't it mean something that I've flown out here to apologise?"

Looking at his mother, Nathan could see the hope etched upon her face and a part of him – that little boy inside of him who still wanted his parents' approval - desperately wanted her to be sincere in what she was saying but he couldn't help being wary. Sure, she'd made the effort to come and see him which was something but, right now, he couldn't be certain that this wasn't another way of her trying to cause problems for him and Haley.

"Nathan… Who's at the door?"

Haley's voice cut into his thoughts and turning to look at her, he smiled at the vision she made standing in front of him in one of his T-shirts; her hair a tangled mess due to their earlier activities. "Uh… It's my Mom," he said a moment later, opening the door wider so the older woman could enter.

The surprised look on her face matched the one Nathan had worn just a few minutes ago.

"Oh… Hi, Mrs Scott," she said, tugging at the hem of her shirt and wishing it was considerably longer.

"Haley… It's nice to see you again."

Haley didn't miss the way the other woman's eyes disapprovingly looked her up and down as she greeted her and she inwardly groaned, having a pretty good idea that this visit wasn't going to be trouble free.

"Nathan, can you bring in the rest of my luggage?" Deb asked.

Having already seen the fairly large suitcase that rested beside his mother and the smaller travel bag she was carrying, he figured that was it. "Uh, how long are you planning on staying?"

"I thought I'd stay for a couple of weeks…"

"A couple of weeks?"

Haley bit her lip to keep from laughing at the way Nathan's voice got higher, although it really wasn't a laughing matter anyway. The thought of putting up with Deb for the next couple of weeks was a depressing one.

"Yes… I figured that it might be nice for me to spend some time with you both. I mean, we seem to have gotten off on the wrong foot with everything that's happened lately which I know is my fault."

"I can't really take time off work at the moment, Mom… Things are pretty hectic and—"

"Haley's at home, isn't she? I can spend time getting to know my daughter-in-law while you're off working," she said, her eyes darting over to Haley.

While Nathan missed the pointed look his mother gave her, Haley didn't and that sinking feeling was growing stronger by the second.

"You don't me staying here, do you, Haley?"

The young woman reluctantly shook her head. "No, of course not."

"Good, that's settled then. Nathan,' she said, turning to address her son, 'why don't you finish bringing in my luggage and take it upstairs while Haley makes us all some tea?"

Giving his wife an apologetic look, he nodded. "Sure, Mom." Stepping out onto the porch, he inwardly groaned at seeing another large suitcase and a couple of smaller ones. He couldn't help but think his mother intended to stay for more than just a couple of weeks judging by how much stuff she'd brought with her although, having said that, Deb Scott wasn't known for travelling light.

Inside the kitchen, the older woman's eyes followed her daughter-in-law as she filled the kettle and then set about getting mugs out of one of the cupboards. "Actually, I prefer to drink my tea out of a cup and saucer," she informed her.

"Uh… okay." Not for the first time since Deb's arrival, Haley wished she was dressed in more than just one of her husband's T-shirts. She could feel the other woman's eyes boring into her and it was taking everything in her not to run out of the room. The atmosphere was so tense you could cut it with a knife and it was a foreign feeling for her considering how friendly they'd once been when they'd worked together at the café.

"Did you make this cake?"

Taking a deep breath, Haley turned to face her mother-in-law who was sitting on one of the stools at the breakfast bar. "Yes… I made it this morning after Nathan left for work. Why?"

"No reason," the blonde said, shrugging her shoulders. "I just would've thought you'd be aware that Nathan doesn't really like chocolate."

"Hmm, is that so? Seems a little odd then that he chose a slice of chocolate cake for dessert when we went out to dinner a few weeks ago."

"There was probably limited choice on the menu," Deb told her.

"Yeah, I guess so," Haley replied before spooning some loose leaf tea into the teapot.

"You're not going to warm the pot first?"

It was on the tip of Haley's tongue to tell her where to go but she refused to spoil Nathan's birthday by getting into a fight with his mother even if she had a strong feeling that's exactly what the other woman wanted. "Sorry, it must've slipped my mind," she said, tipping the tea back into its tin and then filling the pot with some hot water from the kettle to warm it up.

"I'm sure you've had an exhausting day… lying on your back," Deb muttered under her breath but loud enough this time to be heard.

"Excuse me?"

"What, dear?"

"Look, Mrs Scott, if you've got something to say to me, just come out and say it. I'm a big girl and I can take it."

"You're a child, Haley…" she hissed, making sure to keep her voice low so that Nathan wouldn't hear if he suddenly came back downstairs. "A child who has trapped my son into marrying her and who I know only did it for financial purposes. You may have fooled my son but you haven't fooled me and the reason I'm here is to prove to him once and for all what a little gold-digger you are."

Haley shook her head. "A child? I'm almost twenty-one. As for the rest, I—"

"And Nathan is thirty," Deb interrupted. "He should be with someone his own age and someone a lot more sophisticated than you. He's a successful businessman and, believe me, he's going to be a laughing stock when he takes you along with him to business functions." Looking the young woman up and down, she wrinkled her nose in distaste at her dishevelled state. "Oh, it's obvious what he sees in you and once he's bored of being with just one woman, he'll cast you aside and move on to the next one that catches his eye. I've seen it happen time and time again with him."

Haley could feel the tears prickling behind her eyelids and the insecurities she already carried within her rose to the surface and threatened to overwhelm her. "Y-You don't know what you're talking about."

"Don't I? I know Nathan better than he probably knows himself and while this marriage has taken me by surprise, I know it won't last." Getting up off of her seat, she walked around the counter to where her daughter-in-law stood and leaning into her, she whispered, "I'm going to make sure of that."

The young woman gasped and hearing Nathan's footsteps on the stairs, she quickly turned her back and wiped her eyes before busying herself with finishing making the tea. The last thing she wanted was for him to see her so upset.

He could feel the tension in the room as he entered and looking at his mother's face as she stood in front of him, he saw her smiling which was usually a bad sign. "What's going on?"

"Nothing, Nate. I was just complimenting Haley on the cake she made you, although I'm surprised it's chocolate considering you don't like the stuff."

"What are you talking about? I love chocolate… I always have."

"Oh, that's right. Sorry, I must've confused you with Lucas."

"Try again, Mom. Luke loves it almost as much as I do. Remember that time when he was around eight and Karen walked into the back of the café and found him practically covered in chocolate frosting?"

"Hmm… I must be thinking of someone else entirely," she mumbled, forcing herself to keep her smile in place. The smile soon faded when she watched him cross the room and wrap his arms around Haley from behind.

"Are you okay, Hales?" he asked, pressing a kiss to her temple.

Haley froze, knowing only too well that Deb was watching them like a hawk. "Uh huh… I'm just a bit tired," she whispered, trying to keep her voice neutral.

Having heard the young woman's words, Deb seized the opportunity. "Haley, dear, why don't you go upstairs and have an early night? Nathan can stay down here and keep me company while I drink my tea."

"Sure," she murmured, wanting nothing more than to get away from her mother-in-law. Turning around in her husband's arms, she looked up at him and asked, "Do you mind, Nathan?"

He bit back his disappointment at their night coming to an abrupt end. "No, of course not. I'll be up soon, okay?"

"Okay." Kissing his cheek softly and giving his arm a gentle squeeze, she moved around him and made her way out of the kitchen.

"Goodnight, Haley."

"Goodnight," she managed to choke out around the lump that had formed in her throat as she rushed out of the room.

"What did you say to her, Mom?" Nathan asked when he knew his wife was out of earshot.

"Nothing, I swear. I meant what I said when I first arrived here, Nate. I want to make things right between the three of us and the last thing I would do is say something to Haley, especially since I know she'd immediately tell you about it. It's probably just been a long day. Speaking of long days, I think I might take my tea upstairs and have an early night, too. Which room am I staying in?"

"Give me a few minutes to lock up down here and I'll show you."

Meanwhile, Haley had locked herself in the en suite bathroom of her and Nathan's bedroom. Sitting on the floor with her back pressed against the door, she angrily swiped at the tears she could feel streaming down her cheeks. For a moment she had actually believed that her mother-in-law was wanting to make amends for what had happened back in Tree Hill when she'd first found out about her and Nathan getting married but she should've known better. She knew Deb wasn't lying or exaggerating when she said she'd make sure their marriage didn't last and she dreaded what the next few weeks might hold in store, particularly as Nathan would be out at work all day. Sure, she could tell Nathan what the other woman had said but even without him saying it, she knew he still craved his mother's love and approval and it would break her heart for her to be the reason for further division between them.

From what Nathan had told her about his parents and his relationship with them growing up, she was well aware that Deb could be just as cunning as his father had been and she knew she'd just had a taste of it downstairs with the blonde's faux concern for her.

While there was a part of her that was sure Nathan would believe her should she decide to tell him what Deb had said, the insecure side was scared that maybe he wouldn't. After all, blood was thicker than water.

Getting up from the floor, Haley turned on the faucet and splashed cold water onto her face. She stared into the mirror and cringed at the redness around her eyes. One look at her and Nathan would know she'd been crying so, after patting her face dry with a soft towel, she opened up one of the cabinets and reached inside for the concealer . She'd just finished applying it when there was a light tap on the door.

"Hales?"

"I'll be out in a minute," she answered. Taking a deep breath, she unlocked the door and stepped out into their bedroom, giving Nathan a shy smile.

Walking over to her, he wrapped his arms around her waist and lowering his head, he brushed his lips over hers. "I'm so sorry for the interruption tonight."

"It's okay, Nathan. Look, I know things have been pretty awkward with your mom…"

"That's putting it mildly," he said, running one hand over her mussed hair.

"She's the reason you came home early from work, isn't she?"

Nathan reluctantly nodded. "Yeah. She, uh, phoned me this morning and said some stuff…" he trailed off.

"About me, right?"

"Yes," he admitted. "I ended the call before she could rant even more so she was the last person I expected to see on our doorstep tonight."

"What was she saying about me?" Haley asked, despite having a pretty good idea already.

"It's not important, Hales. Maybe I'm jumping the gun here a little but I think she might be serious about making amends. I mean, the fact she flew out here to see me on my birthday… it's got to mean something."

She bit her lip and willed her tears to keep from falling. There was no way she could tell him what his mother had said to her… not now. The hope in his voice just about killed her and instead of saying anything, she simply nodded as she wrapped her arms around him and buried her face against his chest.

"Hey, what's wrong?"

"Nothing… I just… I hope you're right. I know how much you hate fighting with her."

Nathan chuckled at that. "I can't really remember a time when we didn't fight. I thought after she divorced Dan that things would get better between us but they still used me as a pawn in their twisted games and that's one of the reasons I moved out here. I just needed to get away from all the madness."

"I'm sorry you had to go through that…"

"Hey, don't cry," he whispered when she looked up at him and he saw a single tear roll down her cheek. "It's going to be okay."

Pushing herself up onto her toes, she pressed her lips firmly against his; gasping into his mouth when he slanted his head and deepened the kiss a second later. Her fingers fisted his T-shirt before they slipped beneath the fabric to caress his warm skin. She needed to feel him… to know that he was hers and that what Deb had said wasn't true. The thought of losing him… God, she couldn't lose him."

"How 'bout I sneak downstairs and grab us some cake while you change into my birthday gift?" he suggested several moments later once he'd broken the kiss, his breathing just as ragged as hers was.

Shaking her head, Haley stepped out of his embrace and walking over to the door, she locked it. "Forget the cake."

Nathan smirked at that and closing the short distance between them, he seized her lips in a fiery kiss as he began lifting up her T-shirt. They parted just long enough for him to strip it off of her completely and as soon as he'd dropped it onto the floor, he removed his own before cupping her face with his palms and pulling her back into the maelstrom. His hands roamed everywhere he could reach, revelling in the feel of her naked skin against his own. He felt her fingers tugging at his boxers and he gave her a sexy smile as he pushed them down his hips, stepping out of them when they pooled around his ankles. Picking her up, he started to walk towards their bed but before he had a chance to lay her down upon it, there was a knock at the door.

"Nathan? Haley? Are you awake?"

Nathan groaned at the second interruption that night and slowly opening his eyes, he saw the disappointment written across his wife's face which he knew mirrored his own. "Damn! She has got the worst timing ever!"

"You can say that again," she whispered, her fingers caressing the back of his neck. "You'd better go and see what she wants."

"Or we could pretend we're asleep… She'll never know since the door's locked. Good thinking, by the way," he quipped.

The knocking grew louder and despite it being the last thing she wanted to do, Haley untangled her legs from around his waist and slid down his body until her feet were back on the floor. "It doesn't look like she's going anywhere." Picking up her discarded T-shirt, she threw it on and then handed Nathan his boxers. "You'd better put these on before you answer the door."

As he pulled them back on, she got under the covers and turned over onto her side.

"How come I've got to answer the door?"

Smiling at him, she replied, "Hey, she's your mother."

"Don't I know it," he mumbled. Running his hands through his hair, he sighed as he crossed the room to unlock and open the door. "What's up, Mom?"

"You took your time," Deb said. Noticing that his T-shirt was turned inside out, a disparaging comment was on the tip of her tongue but she forced herself to hold it in.

"Uh, yeah… We were asleep," Nathan lied, rubbing his hand along the back of his neck. "So, uh, what can I do for you?"

"The lock on one of my cases is stuck and I was wondering if you could help me with it."

"Can't it wait until tomorrow?"

"If it could I wouldn't be bothering you now, would I?" she told him, instantly regretting her harsh tone when she saw the look on her son's face. "I-I'm sorry, Nate. It's been a very long day and… There's something in that case that I need but I guess it can wait until the morning. Sorry for disturbing you both."

Sighing quietly under his breath, he shook his head. Talk about a guilt trip! "It's fine, Mom. C'mon, let's take a look at this case so we can all get some sleep."

Following Deb along the hallway to the guest bedroom he'd put her in, he couldn't help but wonder whether he was right to feel that his mother was being genuine in wanting to put things right between the three of them. When he'd come back downstairs earlier after taking her luggage up, he'd felt the tension in the air but he was certain Haley would tell him if something had happened while he'd be gone. Her tight hold on him though just a short while ago hadn't gone unnoticed.

"It's that one," Deb said, pointing out the suitcase with the stuck lock. The truth was it wasn't stuck at all but she needed some excuse to interrupt her son and that scheming little minx he'd married.

As soon as Nathan pressed the lock, it instantly popped open. "Are you sure this was the one that was stuck?"

The blonde nodded. "Yes. I guess you've just got that magic touch. Thank you."

"No problem," he replied. "So, uh, if that's it, I'm going to go back to bed."

"Why don't you stay for a little while and keep me company while I unpack? I haven't even given you your birthday present yet."

"Uh… I don—"

"Please, Nathan," she interrupted, placing her hand on his forearm. "We haven't seen each other for a while and I know that's down to me but I miss you and it's still your birthday so let me spend a little bit of it with you."

"Okay," he told her as he took a seat in the armchair in the corner of the room.

Outside the door, Haley stood there listening. She knew it probably sounded petty but in just a couple of hours Deb had already managed to come between her and Nathan and she knew without a shadow of a doubt that this was simply a taste of things to come.


	23. Chapter TwentyThree

**Author's Notes:** First of all, a massive thank you to everyone who read and reviewed the last chapter, and also to those of you who took the time to PM/e-mail me about this story. It's very much appreciated and please also know that your comments helped in making me want to continue writing this when I was starting to doubt ever finishing it.

I'm so sorry for the long delay in updating. Believe me, it wasn't intentional but, sadly, real life issues combined with a loss of inspiration all played their part here. The next chapter is almost complete so, fingers crossed, there shouldn't be too long a gap before I'm able to update again. Thanks for bearing with me and I hope you enjoy the new installment. I'm looking forward (albeit nervously) to finding out what you think of it.

Last but, by no means least, a big thank you goes to **Kristen**, **Molly** and** Lisa** for all of their help, suggestions and reassurances with this chapter. You girls rock! *hugs*

* * *

**Chapter Twenty-Three**

It had been two weeks since Deb Scott had turned up unexpectedly on her son and daughter-in-law's doorstep and she was showing little sign of leaving any time soon. With Nathan out at work every day, it left her free to do what she had set out to do when she had decided on her impromptu visit and she wasn't wasting a precious moment. In her son's presence she did her best to be civil to the devious young woman who seemed so intent on making him look a fool but it wasn't easy. She found herself looking forward to the dawning of each new week day when he would be out of the house and she would be left alone to put her plan into motion. She felt an almost perverse sense of elation when she saw the dread etched on Haley's face as Nathan left for work every morning.

Sipping her black coffee, Deb knew that slow and steady would win the race. Going in like a bull in a china shop wasn't going to serve her purpose long term. If anything, she would end up thrown out of the house and her son's life and she wasn't having that. If anyone was going to end up thrown out on their ass it was going to be that little witch.

It was no more than the little gold-digger deserved and Deb was looking forward to making it happen.

* * *

Upstairs, Haley finished getting dressed before going over to the vanity and taking a seat in front of it. Brushing her hair up into a neat ponytail, she secured it with a black fabric scrunchie and, as she did so, she stared at her reflection and didn't fail to spot the dark circles around her eyes. Ever since Deb had shown up it felt like she hadn't slept a wink. The constant poisonous personal digs were dragging her down and it took everything within her not to react and give the woman what she wanted. Her entire body felt so tense and tightly wound and even when Nathan wrapped her in his strong, loving embrace at the end of the day when he returned home it didn't cease. She kept waiting for him to notice her rigid posture... the fact she didn't melt into him and relax the way she usually did when he took her into his arms but so far he hadn't and, as a result, she'd decided to keep quiet. A part of her wondered if he deliberately wasn't bringing the matter up because he didn't want to find out this his mother was still meddling behind his back.

Nathan was her sole reason for holding back and it was taking all of her strength to not react to Deb's insults. Her palms bore crescent moons from where she dug her fingernails into her skin. It was a wonder she hadn't drawn blood. She knew that Nathan wouldn't hesitate in kicking his mother out if he found out half of the things she was saying and as much as she wanted to be free of the woman, she didn't want to be responsible for their relationship deteriorating even further. Surely it would only be a matter of time before he resented her for it and the thought of losing him... it was too painful to even contemplate.

Sighing quietly, she got up from her seat and reluctantly left the sanctuary of hers and Nathan's bedroom, silently praying that her mother-in-law would leave her be for once.

"Ah, there you are. I thought you were going to be wasting yet another day in bed," Deb said as soon as Haley had entered the kitchen.

Haley bit her tongue to stop herself saying something she would probably regret even though she wanted nothing more than to put her in her place. It was ironic how she'd once told Nathan he didn't need to fight her battles for her; that she was more than capable of standing up for herself yet here she was, letting his mother get away with treating her like dirt. She knew the older woman was well aware that she got up just after Nathan did every morning but that she spent most of her time upstairs in her room keeping out of Deb's way. Walking over to the counter where the coffee percolator was situated, she opened up the cupboard where the mugs were only to find it now held boxes of cereal and other store cupboard ingredients.

"Where are the mugs?"

Deb didn't even attempt to hide her smile. "They're in the next cupboard over," she told her. "I decided to make some changes while I'm here. You know what they say about idle hands."

Ignoring her, Haley found the mugs' new home and after grabbing one, she filled it with coffee before adding a spoonful of sugar to it.

"You might want to try using an artificial sweetener, dear." Looking her up and down, Deb added, "Sugar really isn't good for the waistline."

"Duly noted," Haley replied. Taking a mouthful of her drink, she grimaced as she swallowed the cold liquid.

"Oh, didn't I tell you? I switched off the coffee machine a while ago. I thought you'd prefer to make some fresh coffee when you finally came downstairs."

Haley was gripping her mug so tightly she was sure the ceramic would crack at any second. Placing it onto the counter, she said, "I'll make some after I've checked the mailbox."

"I've already done that. There were just a couple of things for Nathan which I've put on his desk."

"There wasn't anything for me?" Haley asked.

"No. I just told you, the only mail delivered today is for my son." Smiling sweetly, Deb said, "Are you expecting something?"

"Yes. The local college is sending me an application pack but it hasn't arrived yet. I was sure it'd be here by now."

"Maybe it went to the wrong address. Are you certain you gave them your correct details?"

Haley knew exactly what the blonde was implying with that question and she gritted her teeth. "Yes."

"Well, then, I'm sure it's on its way." Passing by the young woman, Deb went over to the kitchen table in the corner of the room and picked up her jacket which was hanging on the back of a chair. Slipping it on, she grabbed her large purse before turning to face Haley. "I've got a few errands to run so why don't you make yourself some breakfast while I'm gone. I've still got some organising to do in the kitchen when I get back and I'd rather not have you under my feet while I do it."

Before the auburn haired young woman could utter a word, Deb breezed past her and a minute later Haley heard the front door close. She felt like screaming. All she wanted was for Deb to accept her as Nathan's wife but it looked less and less likely that that was going to be happening. Pouring the cold coffee down the sink, she washed out the glass jug before removing the filter paper from the machine and dumping it in the trash. Opening up the drawer where they kept the filters, she sighed – this time loudly – when she saw they were no longer there. Great! Where the hell had Deb moved them to?

It had only been two weeks but Haley already felt that if anyone was going to be leaving Chicago it was going to be her.

* * *

Clutching her purse tightly, Deb walked through the entrance to the park, which was located about twenty minutes from the house, and sat down at the first bench she came to. Even though nobody knew her here, she still took a quick glance around before opening her bag and removing the large envelope from inside of it. She scowled when she saw the words "Mrs Haley Scott" written across it with Nathan's address underneath.

"Not for much longer," she mumbled under her breath. Ripping open the envelope, she felt a lick of satisfaction run through her as she deliberately tore through the name and address and getting up from the bench, she walked over to a nearby trash can and threw the whole thing into it. "You're going to stay a college drop-out, Haley James. My son is not wasting his hard earned money on your education just because your parents couldn't afford it."

Her spirits raised somewhat, Deb smiled as she made her way out of the park. Instead of going back to the house, she decided to go into town and indulge in a little retail therapy. After all, Nathan had mentioned last night that he had an important event to attend in a few weeks time and she would need something nice to wear. No way was she letting him take that gold-digging little tramp with him who would no doubt just embarrass him in front of his colleagues and peers. No, she would just have to come up with something to get Haley out of the way for the night.

With her daughter-in-law being so young and gullible Deb was sure it wasn't going to take much ingenuity.

* * *

Ending the call she had just made, Haley set the phone down. She'd just phoned the college and spoken with the same woman who took her initial query over a week ago. The woman had confirmed to her that she had sent out the application pack the very same day to the address she had been given. She promised to send another pack out today.

Haley had already had her suspicions that her mail had been intercepted and now she was even more certain and there was only one person who could've done it. Starting tomorrow, she was done hiding up in her room. If necessary, she was determined to sit by the mailbox each morning and get the mail before her interfering mother-in-law could do it.

She had always loved school and it had broken her heart to leave college, not that she blamed her parents. It wasn't their fault and she'd totally understood the situation. Now, though, she had the chance to pick up where she had left off and she wasn't going to let it slip through her fingers and with Deb sticking around for the foreseeable future, she desperately wanted to get out of the house and spend as little time as possible with the woman. College would offer her a welcome escape.

If she didn't receive this application pack, she decided that she'd physically go to the college and complete the necessary forms there and then. There was no way in hell she was going to let Deb take this away from her.

* * *

"Hey, Mom," Nathan said, entering the house a little after six that evening. "Where's Haley?"

Deb groaned under her breath. Did he have to mention her name as soon as he'd walked through the door, for God's sake. Doing her best to fix a smile onto her face, she replied, "She's upstairs which is where she's been practically all day. That really isn't healthy for her."

"Is she okay? She's not sick or anything, I mean."

"I don't know. Like I said, I've hardly seen her today."

Nathan frowned. "You, uh, haven't been saying anything to her, have you?"

Getting up from the armchair she was sitting in, she placed her hands on her hips. "I've been nothing but friendly to her since I've been here but, of course, you're blaming me for this. You're always going to see me as the villain and her as the innocent little princess."

"No, no, I'm not. I-I'm sorry. I wasn't accusing you; I was just wondering, that's all."

Reigning in her temper, Deb placed her hand on his arm and gave it a light squeeze. "No, I'm sorry, honey. I shouldn't have reacted like that. Why don't you go upstairs and see her? Let me know if she'd like anything to eat or drink."

He nodded. "Yeah, okay. Thanks."

She watched him take the stairs two at a time in his eagerness to get upstairs and this time she didn't even attempt to hide her look of contempt. "Why can't you see what she's really like, Nate?" she said, her voice not much more than a whisper. As she watched him disappear from view, she found herself wishing that her ex-husband was still alive. Dan Scott would've had more than a few ideas of how to deal with someone like Haley James.

* * *

Quietly opening his bedroom door, Nathan crossed over the threshold and he instantly saw his wife curled up on his side of their bed, her back to him. He stood there for several moments, just watching her. Something was off with her... it had been for a couple of weeks now but when he'd ask her if she was okay, she simply smiled at him and said everything was fine. He knew things between her and his mother were still a little frosty and that it most likely wasn't a coincidence that her quiet demeanor had something to do with the older woman's arrival, but since she hadn't said anything else and he hadn't witnessed anything first-hand, he wasn't sure whether he should raise the matter. If things were fine, like Haley was insisting, maybe it was better to leave it alone. He had to trust that she would confide in him if anything was bothering her.

The fact his mom had shown up the night of his birthday, full of apologies had to mean something and he wanted to believe she was genuine in wanting to make amends with him and also with Haley for her previous behaviour towards them and their marriage. He'd already lost one parent and while his relationship with his mother had been just as fraught as the one he'd had with Dan, he hoped that now they were both older and wiser, that they could find a closeness that had previously eluded them. Maybe that was wishful thinking though, he sighed.

With him out at work every day, he realised that the situation probably wasn't the easiest for Haley but surely she'd tell him if his mother was causing her any trouble and...

Nathan was brought out of his reverie when Haley turned over in bed and saw him watching her.

"Hey," she said, smiling shyly at him.

"Hey," he replied, returning her smile with one of his own. "Are you okay? My mom said you've been up here all day."

"I've just felt a little tired. I didn't sleep all that great last night," she told him.

Walking over to the bed, Nathan sat down beside her and took her hand in his, rubbing his thumb along over her wedding ring. "You should've woken me up," he teased. Leaning forward, he brushed his lips over hers before kissing her softly.

Haley moaned into his mouth and easing her hand out of his, she cupped the back of his head, her fingertips massaging his scalp while, at the same time, holding him in place. When his tongue teased the seam of her lips, she instantly parted them and allowed him access.

Within moments, she had pulled him down on top of her and they were passionately making out; their hands wandering everywhere they could reach. Nathan was just about to slip his hand beneath Haley's T-shirt when there was a knock on the door which he hadn't closed behind him.

Haley felt like crying at yet another interruption. Ever since Deb's arrival this was par for the course. Whenever she and Nathan were alone, whether it was just talking or they were being intimate, the woman would suddenly pop up with some ridiculous request which would subsequently put a stop to matters.

She should have known as soon as Nathan kissed her that it would only be a matter of moments before Deb reared her head yet again.

"What is it, Mom?" Nathan asked, not moving away from his wife. He'd felt her entire body become rigid at the interruption and he was sure he heard her curse, something she rarely ever did. He was determined to ask her about it later.

"I was hoping you could drive me to the store," Deb said as she further entered the room. "I don't really know my way around town and I need a few things."

Haley tightly gripped the edge of the comforter she was lying on. Earlier that day, her mother-in-law had been out for several hours and had returned with several shopping bags. Funny how she'd easily managed to find her way around to buy a ton of clothes but all of a sudden she needed Nathan's assistance.

"Can't it wait until tomorrow?" he asked. It had been a long exhausting week at work and the last thing he felt like doing was getting in the car to ferry his mother around.

"I wouldn't ask if it wasn't important, honey," she told him. "I would've asked Haley to accompany me but I've hardly seen her today. Isn't that right, dear?"

The flash of triumph the older woman displayed as she stared at her made Haley feel sick to her stomach. "Right," she mumbled before she slid out from underneath her husband and rushed into the bathroom, slamming the door behind her and locking it.

"What the hell?" Nathan asked, his mouth dropping open as his wife stormed out of the room.

"How rude!" she exclaimed. "I guess you're used to this sort of childish behaviour with her though."

"Mom!" Getting up from the bed, he gave her a hard stare.

"What? Tell me, what am I supposed to think when she acts so petulantly?"

Nathan ran his hands through his hair before loosening his tie. "I need to talk to Haley so why don't you go downstairs and—"

"What about going to the store, Nathan? I really need a few things and maybe it'd be better to give her some time to calm down. Obviously, something's bothering her but going in there demanding to know what's wrong probably isn't the wisest move right now. I'm just thinking of you," she told him, gracing him with a sympathetic look.

"The store can wait. If it's that urgent call a cab. There's a number for a local firm in the address book in my office. I want to check on Haley."

The urge to stamp her foot was almost too strong to ignore but she somehow managed not to do it. "Fine," she grumbled before turning and walking out.

Expelling a long breath, Nathan closed and then locked the bedroom door. He stared at the bathroom door for a minute before making his way over to it and knocking softly. "Hales? Can you open the door for me?"

In the bathroom, Haley stared unseeingly into the mirror over the sink, her vision blurred by her tears which were steadily rolling down her cheeks. She felt like she couldn't breathe and, right then in that very moment, all she wanted was to be anywhere but here. She was tempted to go and visit her parents... maybe even one of her siblings, but she didn't want to worry any of them. As soon as they saw her they would instantly know that something was wrong.

"Haley, please open the door."

Nathan's voice cut into her thoughts and after wiping away her tears with the back of her hand, she turned on the faucet and splashed some cold water onto her face before patting it dry with a towel. Taking a few deep breaths, she went over and flipped the lock.

Nathan wasted no time in opening the door and when he saw her standing in front of him, he suddenly seemed to take in how much smaller she looked... how fragile. "Hales..."

Not wanting to break down in front of him, Haley forced herself to smile and pushing herself onto her toes, she pressed a kiss onto his cheek before retreating. "I'm sorry about storming out. I don't know what's wrong with me lately. If I could just get a good night's sleep I'm sure I'll feel much better."

"Is that all it is?" he asked, taking her hand in his and lacing their fingers together. "You... you'd tell me if my mom was doing or saying stuff to you behind my back, right?"

She briefly hesitated but then nodded her head. "Yeah... of course. I-I promise. I think I'm going to try and take a nap so you might as well take your mom to the store. You know you won't get any peace otherwise," she told him, hoping he bought her cheery tone which sounded so fake to her own ears.

"I really don't want to go out," Nathan replied. "I was hoping we could get a head start on our weekend and just kick back and relax. Maybe order in some food and watch a movie."

Smiling, she gently squeezed his fingers. "That sounds perfect but with the way I'm feeling I'd probably fall asleep on you."

"I don't mind," he said, returning her smile. "I love having you snuggled up next to me."

Her heart melted at his words and, not for the first time, she wished that Deb Scott would go back to Tree Hill and leave the two of them alone to get on with their rest of their lives in peace and quiet. Just as she thought that, the woman in question called up the stairs.

"Nathan, honey, your dinner's on the table."

"Please tell me she hasn't been cooking," he whispered to his wife.

Haley couldn't help laughing. "I doubt it. Didn't you once tell me she manages to burn water?"

"Yeah, and I wasn't kidding. I practically lived on take-out and TV dinners as a kid."

Pushing herself up onto her toes, she wrapped her arms around his neck and brushed her lips over his. "Aww, poor baby. How about I make you something special for dinner tomorrow."

"Mac and cheese?"

She smiled at his request. Ever since she had made him her family's recipe for macaroni and cheese, he declared it to be the best he'd ever eaten, telling her it was even better than his Aunt Karen's though he said he'd deny it if she brought it up in front of the other woman. "If you want."

"Oh, I want," he murmured huskily, his arms banding around her waist, drawing her even closer to his body. His lips were almost touching hers when his mother's voice rang out again.

"Nathan, c'mon! Your food's getting cold!"

He turned his head slightly and shouted back, "I'll be down in a minute." Resting his forehead against Haley's, he closed his eyes and reveled in the soothing touch of his wife's fingertips lightly caressing his nape. "If she isn't gone in a week's time I'm packing her bags for her and putting her on the first flight back to North Carolina."

A surge of hope bubbled up in Haley's chest upon hearing him say that and she silently prayed with every fibre of her being that he meant it. "You'd better get down there before she comes looking for you," she teased.

He nodded. "Try and get some rest, okay. When I come back upstairs I'll bring you something to eat."

"Okay, thanks."

After he'd kissed her once more, Nathan left the room and she released a long breath. She desperately wanted it to be just the two of them again but as she began remembering Deb's verbal jabs to her over the past couple of weeks, that little bit of hope she'd felt a few moments ago was already already fading and she was left with the sinking feeling that things were only going to get worse.

* * *

During dinner, which had consisted of a grilled ham and cheese sandwich that she'd managed to prepare without burning the bread too much, Nathan had had the audacity to flat out ask her if she was upsetting Haley and for a split-second Deb had been worried the little bitch had told him what she'd been up to in his absence but when she denied it and asked what Haley had been saying, he replied that she hadn't told him anything; just that she was feeling tired and that was the reason for her quietness. As she'd loaded the dishwasher, Deb had breathed a quiet sigh of relief, a bubble of happiness welling inside of her at the fact her soon-to-be ex-daughter-in-law was actually keeping her mouth shut.

It was while he was eating that she'd almost brow-beaten him into taking her to the store so here she now was, walking up and down various aisles of the nearest drugstore picking up random items she really didn't want or need. Still, anything to get him out of the house and away from his whiny child bride.

If she hadn't walked into their bedroom when she did she knew only too well what they would have ended up doing. She wouldn't put it past Haley to trap Nathan into getting her pregnant so she was just going to have to do her best to interrupt them as much as she possibly could.

Deb had seen the look of fear in the young woman's eyes and that made her all the more determined to keep going with her plan to split them up. It hadn't occurred to the blonde that Haley was petrified of losing Nathan. In her mind, she believed the fear stemmed from losing the nice, comfortable lifestyle being married to him afforded her. If she thought she could get away with her son never finding out about it, she'd offer to buy Haley out of his life but that was too risky.

No, she needed to keep being as subtle as possible, especially when Nathan was around. Picking up a can of hairspray, Deb placed it into the basket she was carrying. She realised she probably shouldn't have revealed her game plan to Haley quite so soon but, so far at least, the girl was keeping quiet. She had to admit, she wasn't quite expecting that. As she'd began arranging her belongings in the guest bedroom the night she'd arrived, a part of her was sure Nathan was going to barge in at any second demanding to know what she'd said to upset his precious wife but it hadn't happened. Instead, she'd decided to interrupt them with the lame excuse of not being able to open her suitcase and, somehow, she had managed to keep him chatting for almost an hour before he finally told her he was going to bed. Wickedly, she'd knocked on his door five minutes later to thank him for accepting her apology and for letting her stay and she had internally cheered when he'd asked her to keep her voice down as Haley was fast asleep.

Her plan had already started working and she couldn't have been happier.

"Mom, are you done yet?" Nathan asked, coming around the corner of the aisle and seeing her just standing there staring at a display of haircare products.

"Almost, honey," she said, turning to look at him from over her shoulder. When he walked away, heading towards the pay desk, the corners of her lips quirked upwards into a half-smile. "Almost," she repeated in a soft whisper. "In fact, I don't think it's going to take very much longer at all."

* * *

As Haley figured it would be, the weekend was another nightmare. Every time she turned around there was Deb, a nasty smirk stretched across her face. When she began preparing the macaroni and cheese she had promised Nathan the night before, her mother-in-law bitched constantly about the amount of calories the meal contained and even went so far as to imply that Haley was trying to shorten her son's life by feeding him fattening foods so she could get her hands on his inheritance and the properties he owned.

She was reaching the end of her tether and really didn't know how much more she could endure before she finally broke. Every night she desperately wanted to confide in Nathan but then she'd see him smiling and laughing with his mother and she knew she couldn't do it. She couldn't be the one to put the final nail in the coffin of their relationship. At the back of her mind was the saying "blood is thicker than water" and even though things had never been easy between mother and son, Haley couldn't see him choosing her over Deb and, as awful as things were right now, she actually didn't want that for them.

Sadly, it didn't look as though Deb shared that opinion and the blonde was making it increasingly clear with her words and actions that she was willing to do whatever it took to get rid of her.

"Hales? What are you doing out here?" Nathan asked, finding his wife curled up on one of the sun loungers in the garden. The sun was just beginning to set and the breeze ruffling her hair was turning chilly.

"I just felt like getting some fresh air," she told him.

"Are you okay, baby?" Taking a seat on the lounger beside hers, he leaned forward and brushed his fingers along her forearm.

"Uh huh." She nodded, doing her best to smile and reassure him.

"So, I've got some good news."

"Really?" Haley mentally crossed everything that he was about to tell her that Deb was going back home.

"Yep. My mom just told me she's going out and won't be back until late. Apparently, she has a friend who lives about an hour from here so she's going to visit her. I just booked her a cab so it looks like we're going to have the place to ourselves for the evening."

"That's... great. It'll be nice to spend some time alone together." Even though she was genuinely happy at the prospect of having a Deb-free night, she couldn't help feeling a twinge of disappointment that the news wasn't what she'd been hoping for. Her voice sounded flat and she hoped Nathan didn't pick up on it. When she saw his forehead crease slightly, she held her breath waiting for the subsequent question but it never came. Forcing herself to sound perkier, she asked, "What do you feel like doing tonight?" She couldn't help giggling when instead of answering her verbally, he simply flashed her a smirk.

"What?" Nathan asked, joining in with her laughter.

"You're so obvious," she teased.

He was just about to kiss her when he heard his mother's voice. "Jesus Christ," he mumbled against her mouth.

Haley sunk her teeth into her bottom lip to keep from laughing even though the situation wasn't the least bit funny. If she didn't laugh she'd probably end up crying.

"What is it, Mom?"

"I just wanted to let you know my taxi is here so I'm off. In case it's too late I might stay at Melinda's and come back in the morning. I'll call and let you know if that happens."

"Yeah, okay. Have fun with your friend."

"Oh, I will," Deb replied, a big smile illuminating her face. "I definitely will. See you later."

"Bye," Haley whispered. She hadn't missed the other woman's smile and she felt even more uneasy than she had previously.

Upon hearing the faint sound of the front door closing, Nathan's smirk deepened. "Alone at last." Kissing his wife's lips, his voice was deep and husky when he asked, "Do you want to go inside?"

She gave a small nod. Cupping the back of his head, she initiated the kiss this time, slipping her tongue into his mouth and letting it tangle playfully with his own. She moaned with disappointment when he drew back from her.

Standing up, Nathan held out his hands and as soon as Haley placed hers in them, he gently pulled her up and then banded his arms around her waist. "I love you," he whispered, nuzzling his nose against hers before kissing her again.

Hearing him say that made her heart race and she kissed him back hungrily, bringing her hands up to cup his face. "I love you, too," she said breathlessly. Not putting it past a certain someone to suddenly return home despite what she'd told them a short while ago, Haley practically dragged him into the house and upstairs to their bedroom.

"A little eager, are we?" he said chuckling.

She felt her cheeks heat up but she didn't look away. "Considering we haven't made love in almost a week... hell yeah," she told him, locking the door.

Nathan didn't object. His mother had been a royal pain in the butt since she'd turned up on his doorstep what with her constant interruptions and even though she said she wouldn't be back until late tonight, he wouldn't have been surprised if she suddenly popped up again saying the cab had broken down and asking him to drive her to her friend's place. If Haley hadn't locked the door he would've done it.

They undressed each other slowly, their lips meeting in soft, fleeting kisses while their hands wandered everywhere they could reach. Feeling Nathan's naked body rubbing against her own as he laid her down in the centre of their bed had her moaning in pleasure. Her hands kneaded the smooth skin of his back and shoulders, luxuriating in the feel of him pressing her down into the soft mattress. She missed this more than she'd realised and bringing her legs up to wrap around his waist, her hold on him increased.

Nathan teased her with his lips and tongue, grazing the base of her neck with his teeth before sucking a patch of her delicate skin into his mouth, determined to leave his mark on her. He gasped against her when she took him into her hands and caressed his hot, aching flesh. His fingers gripped the pillow either side of her head and when he finally entered her, he buried his face in the crook of her shoulder, thereby missing the single tear that escaped from the corner of her eye.

* * *

"I just don't know what I'm going to do," Deb said, sighing. Raising her glass, she took a long sip of her cool, crisp Chardonnay.

Melinda Murray-Hall smiled at her friend. "Just keep doing what you're doing. From what you've told me, it sounds like she's already starting to crack."

"Yes but... I just feel it's not enough. I wish I had something on her... something big that would get rid of her once and for all."

Playing with the stem of her own wine glass, she mused, "I have to say, I was surprised when I heard about Nathan getting married and so fast at that. My initial thought was that he had to get married—"

"That was my first thought, too," Deb interjected. "But she's not pregnant. Apparently, she told him she was a virgin waiting for marriage before she'd have sex with him and he fell for it. I love my son but he's a typical man."

Melinda laughed softly. "Could there be another reason for how quickly he married her?"

"Like what?"

"I don't know... Let's look at the facts. He comes home unannounced and within the space of what, a month? He's met and married a young woman when he'd apparently always claimed he would be an eternal bachelor. There's something more than a little fishy about it, if you ask me, Deb."

"I completely agree. I just can't think of anything which would've forced him to marry her."

"Hmm, is there any chance this has something do with Dan?"

Deb frowned. "How do you mean?"

"Could he have included a stipulation in his Will... something which would give Nathan no choice but to comply?"

She'd just been about to take another drink of her wine but she paused at the question. "His inheritance," the blonde stated. She knew only too well how evil her ex-husband had been at times but would he really have done something so drastic and if the answer to that question was yes, would Nathan have actually gone ahead and complied with it? He'd told her from a young age that he would never get married so why the sudden change of heart? She didn't believe for a second that someone as... innocent and homely as Haley James could capture her son's attention enough for him to marry her and so damn quickly at that.

Melinda watched as her friend thought about the seed she had planted. "It might be worth talking to Dan's lawyer."

"Unfortunately, I think client confidentiality still exists even though the old bastard's dead."

"Hmm, didn't you two once have a... uh, thing a few years back. Maybe you could pay him a visit... flash a little leg and cleavage..." she trailed off.

Deb's smile returned as she considered the redhead's words. "You know what, Mel, I think that's an excellent idea."


	24. Chapter TwentyFour

**Author's Notes: **At the risk of sounding like a broken record, I'm so sorry for the long delay in updating this story. Real life continues to kick my butt and I can't tell you how much I miss the days when I used to be able to while away the hours writing.

Anyway, in honour of One Tree Hill's series finale which is airing tonight, I thought it fitting that I post something since this show has given me my ultimate OTP and I've written more stories for them than all my other fandoms combined. (Thanks, by the way, to those of you on Twitter who voted for an update to this particular story.) It's also provided me with so many amazing friendships and I'll be eternally grateful to it for that. Thank you and goodnight, One Tree Hill!

Thanks to all of you who took the time to review the previous chapter. I really appreciate it and I'm glad to know you enjoyed it. :)

On a separate note, I'm still posting all of my new stories on my personal fanfiction archive. I know this site has disabled external links so the easiest way of finding it is probably via my Twitter page (I'm **deviousnsinning** over there). The link to my website is in my profile. Other than that, just Google "The Anticipation Kills Me" and you should find it.

* * *

**Chapter Twenty-Four**

"Deb, it's good to see you," Vernon Jeffries said, standing up to greet the woman as she entered his office.

"It's good to see you, too," she told him, taking his offered hand and firmly shaking it. "Really good."

The lawyer's eyes widened slightly at her flirtatious tone. With the exception of Dan's funeral, it had been some time since they had last seen each other so he wasn't expecting her to be quite so... friendly. Their year-long affair had been insanely passionate and while he would've loved to have carried on seeing Deb, he'd begun to worry that his wife was becoming suspicious and so had ended the relationship. The blonde had taken the news relatively well and said she understood his reasons but the few times they'd bumped into each other at the country club, he'd detected a touch of bitterness from her. Thankfully, his wife hadn't picked up on the awkwardness between them and she was still none the wiser, something he wanted to keep that way, especially given her most recent suspicions about him and one of the firm's junior partners. Walking to the mini-bar in the corner of his large, spacious office, he poured himself two fingers of scotch. "Can I get you anything?"

"I'll have the same as you," Deb replied. She waited until he'd poured their drinks and was heading back towards her to unbutton and remove the black, knee-length raincoat she was wearing, letting it fall down her arms onto the carpeted floor, and she tried her best not to laugh out loud when Vernon's mouth dropped open and he stopped dead in his tracks. "You always did love me in anything black and sheer and I figured that probably hasn't changed."

"Good God," he mumbled, his eyes roaming all over her, soaking up the sight of his former lover dressed in a see though black negligee which she'd teamed with a matching garter belt to hold up her sheer black stockings. Unconsciously, he licked his suddenly too dry lips and thought about how she looked even better today than the last time he'd seen her dressed similarly. You'd never guess from looking at her that she was on the cusp of turning fifty.

"Like what you see?" Deb asked, sashaying towards him and then taking her drink from his hands. Fixing her gaze on him, she sipped slowly at the expensive scotch.

"Uh... I-I can't do this," he choked. "Lucinda and I... We had a little... bump in the road a couple of months ago and we're trying again so if she found out about this..."

"Found out about what, Vern?" Removing the remaining glass from his hand, she placed it – along with hers – on the corner of his desk before running her palms up and down his chest. "She didn't find out about us before... you know how discreet I can be."

"Deb, please... you're not making this easy."

Laughing softly, she cupped him through his pants. "No, I'm making it extremely hard, aren't I?"

His eyes fell shut as the blonde continued to stroke him. He moaned in the back of his throat when he suddenly felt her bare skin on his erection. She already had him so mindless with lust that he hadn't even realised she'd lowered his zipper.

"Have you missed me?" Deb whispered. Leaning up, she nuzzled his chin with her nose before brushing her lips over his.

"Yes," he admitted.

"I've missed you, too," she lied. While Vernon was still as handsome and distinguished as ever with his lean physique and slightly greying hair, she had moved on and if it wasn't for Melinda's suggestion that she get in touch with him, she wouldn't have given him a second thought.

"The door..." he mumbled against her lips in between kisses.

"Don't worry, I locked it," Deb whispered, making herself sound breathless. For her plan to work, she needed Vernon to believe she still wanted him as much as he wanted her because by the time she'd finished with him, he would be telling her everything she needed to know about Dan's Will and whether or not it had anything to do with Nathan's marriage.

If he didn't, well, she'd just have to tell his darling wife what her husband was getting up to behind her back. Fingers crossed, the Dictaphone in her purse, which she'd left open and positioned on the chair by his desk, was picking all of this up.

Leverage, after all, was everything.

* * *

Arriving home from work and not finding Haley, Nathan entered his office to deposit his briefcase and he smiled when he saw her sitting behind his desk. "Hey, baby."

Pausing from what she was writing, she looked up and smiled at her husband. "Hey. You're back early."

"Yeah. My last appointment got cancelled so I thought I'd come home. One of the perks of being the boss," he said, flashing her a wink. Walking over to her, he perched on the desk and lowered his head as she tipped hers back and they shared a tender kiss. "So, what are you doing?"

"My college application pack arrived today so I'm filling in the forms," Haley replied, beaming. "There seems to be a chance I'll be able to pick up where I left off and won't have to repeat anything."

"That's great news." Brushing away a stray lock of hair, he stroked her face. "How about we go out to eat? With my mom here I know things have been a bit awkward so we should definitely take advantage of her absence."

Awkward was putting it mildly, Haley thought to herself. "Speaking of your mom, do you have any idea where she's gone?"

Nathan shook his head. "No. She just said she had some business to attend to and would be back in a couple of days. I figured it was probably best not to ask. So, you up for going out tonight?"

Smiling, she replied, "Yeah, that sounds good. I'm in the mood for Chinese."

"And what if I don't want Chinese?" he teased.

"Tough," she joked.

"You're lucky I love you."

Feeling that familiar heady rush at hearing those three words from him, her smile threatened to split her face in two. "Yeah, I am," she whispered.

"C'mere," Nathan said, getting up from the desk. Taking her hands in his, he gently pulled her up out of the large leather chair. "You know, we don't really have to go out to eat."

"Mm, what do you suggest?" she asked, feigning ignorance. As if she didn't know what he was suggesting.

"I think we should work up an appetite and then order in," he told her, his fingers toying with the buttons on her fitted blue and white plaid shirt.

"Is that so?"

"Uh huh," he said, popping the first button and then the second.

"What if your mom comes home?"

"The front door's locked so she'll have to ring the bell." Kissing along her cheek until his mouth was right by her ear, he whispered huskily, "Let's not even think about her..."

Scratching her blunt fingernails along his scalp, Haley's eyes fluttered shut and she gave herself over to the delicious sensations he was already creating within her.

Savouring the taste and feel of her husband as he stripped them both of their clothes, Deb Scott was the furthest thing on her mind.

* * *

Following her encounter with Vernon, Deb returned to the hotel room she had booked herself into in Charlotte. She was grateful that the lawyer's offices were located there and not in Tree Hill because she really didn't want to risk seeing anyone she knew and them asking her a lot of questions she didn't want to answer.

After taking a long, hot shower, she dressed in a pair of designer jeans and a silk button-up blouse. She chuckled to herself as she brushed her hair and then put in her silver stud earrings. Vernon's reaction was better than she could've anticipated and she'd already listened to the tape she had made at his offices. The sound was a little muffled in places but, other than that, you could easily tell what was happening and who the two voices on it belonged to. It would've been easy to play her hand right then and there but she decided to bide her time. Things had to be put in place beforehand. With Vernon having been Dan's lawyer, she was fairly sure he had his own share of dodgy dealings and it would be madness not to protect herself before she told him exactly what she wanted from him. What he'd told her about trying to make his marriage work made things even better for her. He was a wealthy man and she was quite certain that he wasn't willing to part with at least half of everything he owned over a simple one-night-stand and an affair that had ended years ago.

Pulling on her raincoat and tying the belt, Deb grabbed her purse and after checking she had everything she needed, she left the room.

As devious as her ex-husband had been, she was sure giving him a run for his money.

* * *

"Wow!" Haley exclaimed, her breathing ragged and heavy. Resting her forehead against Nathan's bare shoulder, she giggled at the rapid rise and fall of his chest demonstrating his own over-exertion at their fast and furious coupling.

"I think you're gonna have to peel me off this leather chair," he told her which made her laugh even harder.

"Hey, you're the one who sat down in it and pulled me onto your lap. We could've always used the floor."

"The floor's too hard on my back."

"Aww, I'd forgotten you're an old man now..."

Nathan pinched her side and smirked at her yelp. "I didn't hear you complaining about my age a few minutes ago."

Rubbing her thumb back and forth along his cheekbone, Haley closed the short gap between them, fusing her lips to his. She mewled into his mouth as his slightly calloused palms massaged all over her back and shoulders. Kissing the side of his neck, she quietly said, "I wish it could always be like this."

"What, baby?"

"I, uh, just said I love being with you like this."

Winding his fingers in her thick, auburn hair, Nathan directed her face back towards his and he suckled on her bottom lip, nipping it with blunt teeth. "Same here." Kissing her fiercely, he poured everything he felt for her into it, his hands holding onto her tightly. A moment later, it was his turn to moan as she took him in hand and lowered herself down onto him again before tantalizingly circling her hips. "God... Hales..."

One of Haley's hands gripped the chair's headrest while the other cupped the back of Nathan's neck, holding him to her. The feel of his hot breath against her feverish skin as she slowly moved on top of him was driving her crazy and when he finally took her left breast into his mouth she released a deep, guttural moan. Her fingers were digging so hard into his biceps she was sure he was going to have bruises there tomorrow but she didn't ease her hold on him. She couldn't.

In the recesses of her mind was the knowledge that a certain someone was going to be returning some time soon... whether it be tonight, tomorrow or the day after and all she wanted to do was savour every single minute she and Nathan had alone together.

* * *

The next morning saw Deb up bright and early. Later that day she had a meeting scheduled with Vernon, although he didn't know it. She'd used a fake name when she'd made the appointment with his secretary since she had a feeling he wouldn't want to see her. A one-off fling he could write off but if she arranged to see him, he'd probably think she wanted to start things up with him again and that would be much more difficult to hide from his unsuspecting wife.

Deb slipped into the black and lilac halter-neck dress she'd bought during her shopping trip in Chicago and she admired her reflection in the mirror, smoothing her hands over the soft, silky fabric. The neckline gave a teasing glimpse of her ample cleavage without being too obvious, although after the outfit she'd worn yesterday... this might as well have been a nun's habit, she thought to herself with a smirk. Stepping into a pair of black heeled pumps, she pulled on her raincoat again, buttoning it up so that, like previously, she was hiding what was beneath it. She might as well have a little fun with Vernon before she dropped her bombshell.

Once today was over, she could go back to Chicago and get back to pestering her daughter-in-law who, she was absolutely certain, wasn't going to be holding that title for much longer.

* * *

"D-Deb? Uh... what are you doing here? I'm actually expecting someone el—"

"Yes, a Mrs Cooper. That would be me. I thought it best to make the appointment under a different name. For some reason, I thought you might refuse to see me."

"Of course not," Vernon said, chuckling lightly.

Deb raised a perfectly arched eyebrow. She could tell from that fake little laugh that she had been spot on. "I have a little business I need to discuss with you, Vernon."

"Okay. Why don't we take a seat," he said, beckoning her over to the chair opposite his own executive leather chair. As he passed his desk, he suddenly remembered what had taken place on it just yesterday and he coughed to clear his throat. Like the previous afternoon, he went over to the mini-bar but instead of pouring himself an alcoholic beverage, he retrieved a bottle of water from the small fridge beneath it and after breaking the seal and uncapping it, he took a healthy drink of the cold liquid.

Hiding her smile, Deb played with the end of her belt and when he was facing her way again, she slowly began untying it.

"Uh, Deb... I don't think..." His words died away when he saw the dress she wore beneath the coat and he breathed a sigh of relief though it held a slight tinge of regret. A part of him would've loved to have again seen her in next to nothing.

"Is everything okay, Vern?"

"Yes... yes. So, what can I do for you?" he asked, taking a seat and lacing his fingers together, resting his joined hands on the legal pad in front of him.

"I need a little information," she started. "About Dan's Will."

"Ah, I'm sorry, Deb. Even though Dan's no longer with us I can't divulge its contents. He instructed me to keep certain things private and to only discuss them with the people who were directly affected. You and Dan were divorced for many years prior to his death and all of your legal matters were settled so there's really no need for you—"

"I thought you might say that," she interrupted, "which is why I took the liberty of making this." Opening her purse, she removed a small envelope from inside of it and slid it over to him.

"What's this?"

Smiling, she tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. "Why don't you open it and find out." She watched with baited breath as he carefully opened the plain brown envelope and removed its contents.

Frowning, he repeated his previous question as he held up the small cassette tape between his thumb and forefinger, "What's this?"

"It's a tape recording... from yesterday."

Vernon swallowed past the lump in his throat. "You mean... of us?"

Deb gave a slow nod of her head. "Yes."

"I-I can't believe you did that."

"Really? And here I was thinking you knew me only too well. I'm sorry, Vernon, but drastic times called for drastic measures."

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I take it you intend on sending it to Lucinda if I don't tell you whatever it is you want to know."

"Ah, you do know me," she said, smiling. "What you're holding is a copy... the original is somewhere safe along with evidence of our previous affair. Remember all those personally written little cards you wrote me which accompanied your gifts of flowers and jewellery? I kept them all and I'm glad I did... they'll come in very useful should you decide not to assist me."

"Why are you doing this?" he asked. He watched as Deb uncrossed her slender legs and got up from the chair, crossing over to the bar whereupon she picked up a bottle of gin and began preparing herself a drink.

After pouring some scotch into a second crystal tumbler, she walked back to him, setting his drink in front of him before sitting down again and sipping her gin and tonic. "It's nothing personal."

"So was it all a set up? Yesterday, I mean."

Smoothing her free hand up her bare leg and then idly playing with the hem of her dress, Deb answered him with a slow smile. "If it helps any I had a good time. A very good time."

"That doesn't really answer my question," he told her.

"Fine, it was a set up. I knew if I just asked you about the Will you'd feed me the confidentiality line so I needed a little... leverage to get you to tell me everything I need to know."

Swirling the amber fluid around in his glass, Vernon brought it up to his lips and downed it in one. "Which is?"

"Is Nathan's marriage a sham? Did that son-of-a-bitch include a clause forcing my son to get married?"

Releasing a heavy sigh, the lawyer finally nodded. "Yes."

"I knew it!" The sense of triumph she felt in that very moment was overwhelming and she almost felt giddy. Not even attempting to hide her smile, she leaned forward in her seat and said, "Tell me everything."

* * *

On the way back from the airport to Nathan's house, Deb decided to pay Melinda a visit and fill her in on what had happened in Charlotte. After all, her friend had been the one to suggest she get in touch with Vernon.

"So, how did it go?" Melinda asked eagerly as she led the blonde into her kitchen.

Deb was about to answer when she saw the glint in the other woman's eyes and it gave her pause for thought. While Mel was a very close friend, she was also one of the biggest gossips and she was pretty sure that as soon as she was out of the door, the redhead would be on the phone telling everyone she knew about the situation and she wasn't having that. She needed the matter to stay private if she was going to use it to get rid of Haley.

"Deb?"

"Sadly, it didn't go the way I'd hoped."

Melinda frowned. "Why don't we get comfortable. Can I get you some coffee, tea or maybe something a little stronger?"

"Coffee will be fine. I think I'll save the alcohol for when I'm back home. Lord knows I'm going to need it when I'm dealing with _her_."

After Melinda put on a pot of coffee, she took a seat at the kitchen table opposite her friend. "So, what actually happened with Dan's lawyer? Did he give you anything useful?"

Shaking her head, Deb replied, "He said he couldn't tell me anything otherwise he'd be breaching confidentiality which is still in place even though Dan's dead."

"Well, we'd already guessed that would probably be the case and I thought we decided that you'd use your feminine wiles to get around it." She smiled coquettishly.

Doing her best to school her features, the blonde shrugged. "Believe me, I tried but I must be losing my touch because he didn't fall for it. He just waffled on about not wanting to make his wife suspicious. Apparently, she already thinks he's screwing someone at the office so didn't want to risk doing anything with me in case it got back to her."

"So, you're none the wiser about Nathan and the little minx?"

"No," she lied. "It's unfortunate but that's the way it goes, I guess. I'll just keep doing what I've been doing so far and hope Haley cracks before too long."

"It sounds like you're planning on being in Chicago for a while, then."

Deb smiled. "I'm here for as long as it takes. I doubt Nathan will like it but I'm sure he'll thank me in the long run."

* * *

"Well, well, what do we have here?" Deb asked when she walked into her son's kitchen the following afternoon and found Haley apparently baking up a storm. "You really don't need to be consuming all those extra calories now, do you, dear?"

Haley had her back to the door and she froze when she heard her mother-in-law's voice. If only she'd remembered to lock the door after Nathan's departure. At least then she would have had some warning.

"Cat got your tongue?"

"No. I just wasn't expecting you back so soon."

"Hmm, well, I didn't want you to get too comfortable. I'll just bet you've enjoyed the past few days with me out of the way, haven't you?"

"Yes, actually." Haley smiled, straightening her back. "We've had a blast without your spiteful comments and interruptions."

"I think you mean you've had a blast. But I'm back now, sweetie, and the honeymoon's over." Walking to the refrigerator, Deb removed the bottle of Pinot Noir and set about opening it and pouring herself a glass.

"A little early in the day, isn't it?"

Deb gave her a pointed look. "Mind your own business."

Haley laughed though there was no humour in it. "Funny. You don't seem to mind butting your nose into my business wi—"

"Nathan is my business and don't you ever forget it, young lady." Taking a large gulp of wine, she savoured the familiar buzz of the alcohol working its way through her system. "When I'm done with you, you'll wish you'd never set eyes on my son." After another sip, she added, "Now, I'm going to go and unpack and then take a nice long bath. I think I'll ask Nathan to take me out to dinner tonight so we can catch up... you won't mind staying home. You have had him to yourself for the past couple of nights so I think it's only fair." The blonde walked out of the room, taking the bottle of wine with her, before Haley could utter a word.

"Bitch!" Haley said, not caring if the sound carried and Deb heard her. Removing the apron she was wearing and then turning off the oven despite the fact the last batch cookies inside of it weren't done baking yet, she picked up the phone and speed-dialled her husband's cell phone; smiling when after a couple of rings she heard his dulcet voice on the other end of the line. "Hey, baby. I was wondering, how 'bout I come and meet you at the office and we catch a movie?" As she listened to Nathan's response, she glanced across at the stairs. Two could play this game.

* * *

Deb was fuming when she came downstairs a couple of hours later and discovered Haley's note stuck onto the front of the refrigerator informing her that she was meeting Nathan and they were going to the movies. She had to hand it to Haley; the girl had grabbed the opening she'd inadvertently given her and run with it which was something she herself would've done had their roles been reversed.

Let her have her fun tonight, Deb mused. With the knowledge she'd gained from her little trip to Charlotte, she knew she had the upper hand but, as eager as she was to get things moving and get rid of Haley once and for all, she knew she needed to show some restraint and be patient.

* * *

Walking down the street hand-in-hand as they made their way to the car from the restaurant they had just eaten at, Haley felt free and part of any other regular, young married couple. Before she'd arrived at Nathan's offices, she'd bought a local paper from a nearby news-stand so they could check the movie theatre's listings. Perusing the paper, she'd laughed to herself as she thought about the look on Deb's face when she discovered the note she'd left for her. It served her mother-in-law right!

"What are you smiling at?" Nathan asked, glancing at her while he unlocked the car and opened the passenger door for her.

"Just thinking about what a good time I had with you tonight."

Ducking his head, he kissed her lips. "I had a good time, too and I'm glad you suggested it. We definitely need to do it more often. Not that I mind staying in, of course," he told her, smirking.

"Uh huh," Haley murmured, pushing herself up onto her toes and kissing him; her fingers lightly combing through his hair.

"Let's go home," he said, practically bundling her into the car which made her giggle.

After he'd closed her door, she sighed, her smile instantly disappearing. "I wish we didn't have to," she whispered, knowing what waited for them once they were back at the house.

"You okay?" Nathan asked, sensing the change in her mood as he got into the car and started the engine.

"I'm fine." She was about to tell him she was just feeling tired but she didn't want to use that excuse again. There were only so many times she could say that before he'd realise she wasn't being honest with him, something she'd always been with him up until Deb's arrival. Intertwining their fingers, Haley rested their joined hands on his thigh as she laid back against the headrest, her face turned towards his.

He watched her for a moment, again noticing how quiet she'd become and it was on the tip of his tongue to ask her if anything was wrong when she broke the silence.

"Take me home, baby."

The slow, shy smile she suddenly shot him made his body thrum and he smiled back at her, feeling slightly reassured that maybe he was just imagining things. They'd had a great night together and the last thing he wanted was to spoil the mood.

* * *

"You think you're so clever, don't you?" Deb accused her daughter-in-law, barging into her son's bedroom the next morning after he'd left for work.

After the late night they'd had, Haley had decided to sleep in for a while longer but it looked like that wasn't going to happen now. Sitting up in bed, she rested against the headboard. "Good morning to you, too, Deb."

"You knew I wanted to spend some time with my son last night."

She bit her lip to try to keep from laughing at the look of outrage on Deb's face. "Oh, I'm sorry. I must've forgotten to mention to you that we already had plans. Oops!" Throwing the covers back, she climbed out of bed. "If you don't mind, I'm going to take a shower and then head into town to buy a dress for the awards ceremony Nathan's taking me to on Friday evening."

Deb laughed. "You really think you'll be going? So far, has he introduced you to any of his employees or clients?" Before Haley could answer, she continued. "No, I didn't think so. And do you know why that is? It's because he's embarrassed that his wife is a mere child. He'll be a laughing stock. If you love him so much, do you really want to humiliate him like that in front of so many important people?"

Haley's mouth dropped open in shock at the older woman's words and she felt her skin heat up. "He wants me to come... he told me to buy a dress and—"

"He's just being polite. I can already imagine the raised eyebrows and sniggers the two of you will evoke when you walk into the place."

"Stop it, Deb! Just stop it!" Her head was spinning and she felt her stomach roil. It would serve her mother-in-law right if she threw up on her shoes.

"I'm only thinking of you, dear, and of Nathan, of course. This is an important night for his company and I just think it would be better if someone else accompanied him."

"That someone being you, I suppose?"

"Well..."

"Don't you think it'll be just as embarrassing for a thirty-year-old man to take his mother along with him?" Haley asked, tilting her head to the side.

Deb ignored her question. "I already have a dress for the event and I just so happen to have an appointment at the hair salon for Friday afternoon."

"Wow, what a coincidence. And what do you propose I tell Nathan about why I don't want to go with him?"

"You'll come up with something," she told her, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips. "I'm sure you can be quite... persuasive when you want to be." With that, she turned on her heel and walked out of the room.

"Ugh!" Haley exclaimed, slamming the bedroom door closed and then locking it. Grabbing her cell phone from the nightstand, she scrolled through her contacts and selected a familiar number. She sat down in the armchair by the large bay window and waited for the call to connect. Tears stung her eyes the second she heard her mother's voice on the other end of the line. "Hi, Mom."

"Haley-bop, how are you? I've been meaning to give you a call but Vivian, Mark and the kids have been staying with us so things have been a little crazy."

"H-how's everyone?" she asked. "You're all good, right?"

"We're all fine," Lydia told her. "What about you? How's married life treating you?"

Haley couldn't speak past the lump in her throat.

"Haley... sweetheart, what's wrong? C'mon, you can tell me."

"I-I... I want to come home," she choked out. "I don't think I can take this any more."

"Take what? Has Nathan done something 'cause if—"

"No, no," Haley quickly cut in. "It's not Nathan... He's been great. It's, uh... it's..."

"It's what?" she prompted.

"It's Deb."

"His mother? But she's back in Tree Hill."

Haley brushed away the tears that were rolling down her cheeks with the back of her hand. "No, she's not. She's here in Chicago and she's making my life a misery."

"And what's Nathan doing about it?" Lydia asked.

She could hear the anger in her mother's voice. "He, uh, doesn't know. I mean, I think he suspects that something's not quite right but..." She coughed to clear her throat before admitting, "I haven't told him what's been going on."

"And why the hell not, honey? The Nathan I witnessed in Tree Hill didn't hesitate in calling his mother out on her crap and I can't believe he wouldn't throw her out on her ass if he knew what she was doing to you when he's not around."

"I-I know, Mom, and that's why I haven't said anything. I don't want to be the reason his and Deb's relationship deteriorates even further than it already has, you know. I don't know what I'd do if he ended up resenting or hating me for it."

"Oh, honey." Lydia sighed. She wished she was with her daughter so she could give her a big hug as well as give Deb Scott the ass-kicking she deserved. "Nathan could never hate you... I'd put money on it. You really need to sit him down and tell him what's been going on. He deserves to know the truth."

"I can't. And it would be her word against mine."

"You really think he would believe her over you because I don't. Not for a single second."

Haley desperately wanted to believe her mother's words but something was stopping it from happening. "I think I need a break... a little time away to think everything through."

"You do realise that Deb will see your leaving as a sign that she's won and will use it to her advantage."

Rubbing her hand over her face, Haley nodded despite knowing her mother couldn't see the action. "Yeah, I know but right now I don't care. I just need to get away and have some space to breathe."

"Then come home and spend some time with us. Maybe you could even bring Nathan with you and you can show him around all your old haunts," Lydia suggested.

"I'd love to but he's busy with work and he has some corporate event to attend on Friday."

"Well, he could always come down a little later and spend the weekend here."

"Yeah, maybe," Haley replied, already feeling better at the prospect of getting away and seeing her family. "So, uh, I'll call you once I've made the arrangements and know when my flight gets in."

"Okay, honey. One of us will be there to pick you up."

"Thanks." Haley hesitated before asking the question that had just popped into her head. "Um, can you promise me something, Mom?"

"Sure, what is it?"

"Don't call and talk to Nathan about any of this. Or Deb, for that matter. I know you probably think you'd be helping and I love you for it, but... I just need some time to think before I decide what to do."

"You know me too well."

Haley laughed softly. "Yeah, I do."

After chatting for a little while longer about the rest of the family and what the latest news was, Haley disconnected the call and sat in the chair, staring out of the window.

By the time she finally made it into the bathroom to have a shower, she had made travel arrangements using the internet service on her phone and had her duffel bag packed with enough clothes, toiletries and personal items to last her for about a week; being careful not to make the absence of those items look too obvious.

Knowing she would soon be back in familiar territory with the people she loved and who loved her back just as fiercely made the weight in her heart feel slightly less.

She just hoped Nathan would forgive her.

TBC


End file.
